Roses Red, Lilies, Bright
by HannahBananasxx
Summary: Hopping across the pages of one story to another, a young heroine faces what might just be her biggest adventure yet in Storybrooke, Maine. After all, girls are made of far more ferocious stock than anyone could ever imagine, and teen girls...they'll eat your heart out. (Peter Pan/OC).
1. And Straight On 'Til Morning

**Chapter One - And Straight On 'Til Morning**

* * *

'" _ **Second star to the right, and straight on 'til morning."**_

 _ **That...was the way to the Neverland;'**_

* * *

The woman in black wonders when she would ever catch a break; sometimes, being mayor of a fictional town isn't all that it's cracked up to be-not when there's highly destructive magic prepared to blow up that town to smithereens.

She could feel the magic becoming increasingly unstable, the sparks were crackling in her hands as she tried to control the power of the gem. The purple light emanating from the gem lit up the mine's walls. The Evil Queen, or Regina as she was now called in that world, looked up towards the sound of bounding footsteps.

Regina sees the figure of her adopted son appear with Rose, and the Charmings in tow. They all look relieved to still find her there, Henry and Rose especially. "What are you doing here?" Regina demands.

"You were willing to die to save us, that makes you a hero." Henry says matter-of-factly, David, behind him, puts a hand on his shoulder in solidarity. "And now, we're going to be heroes."

Their combined concerned looks were enough to startle Regina into disbelief. She was giving them a way out. But _now_ they want to share the glory and put the lives of her family in danger?

Regina shook her head, a breathy "No." drawn from her lips.

"We have the last bean. We can open a portal and throw this thing into the void." David says, her words ignored.

"No." repeats Regina more firmly. "You don't know that it'll work."

"We're going to save you, that's that." said Rose, her 'sister' in Storybrooke -and technically her adoptive daughter in the Enchanted forest.

Rose's real sister, Snow White, smiles from behind her. "We have to try."

Snow White (or Mary Margaret as she was known in this new land), was ever the optimist; normally, this type of thing would have made Rose roll her eyes, but that wasn't important. What's important was saving Regina and their town from impending doom; as much as she liked being alive, it wouldn't have made any sense if she didn't have her family.

The Charmings, Henry and Rose Red all made way for Emma (The Saviour) to help Regina contain the gem's power, she reached for the bean in her pocket. The same magic bean that was going to open the portal for them. Emma faltered for a moment, a concern voiced by her father. "Emma?"

Rose didn't like her silence one bit. Despite being Princess Rose Red in her other life, almost three decades spent in Maine gave her above all things, a lot of time to hone skepticism and cynicism as a precious life skill.

"It's empty," Emma replied, feeling around her pockets, her eyes, grim.

Only one conclusion, one word, came to make sense. "Hook." Rose cursed. "That dumb pirate."

Regina was shaking now, tears were filling her eyes. "I can't contain this much longer." Her power was not enough. Maybe she didn't deserve the title of 'Evil Queen' after all. She was too weak to protect even the ones she loved the most.

Emma looked at her with pity. It was the nail in the coffin.

Seemingly out of options, Regina turns to her son who was currently embraced in the arms of her old mortal enemies. It was funny to think how she didn't see Snow White and Prince Charming anymore, only her friends, Mary Margaret and David. In the corner, Rose was shaking beside Mary Margaret, she was angry, she wanted to cry out and beat the stupid diamond to dust with her bare fists.

Emma walks to them, "Mom, Dad." she says, they envelop her into their arms. Their faces horror stricken, they wept as they huddled together. Henry, looking so hopeless, was allowed to go to his other mother.

A smile tore into Regina's face as she gazed at her son, perhaps for the last time. She knew she had to say goodbye, otherwise, she was never going to be able to say it again. "I love you Henry, I know you wish I was strong enough to stop all this...I'm just not." Regina's tears sprung forth as she savoured her son's warm embrace, regretful that she could not do the same with her own.

"It's not right!" came Rose's withering cry. She looked furious. "You deserve so much more, Gina...and you never even got the chance!" She was yelling, her reddening face in such panicked misery as she stared at the only sister she's known for those twenty-eight years under the Curse. Regina sucked in failing breaths as she watched Rose so tormented.

"C'mere, you silly thing." Her dark head beckoned, wanting her sister's arms around her too. "I want you to know, before everything, before Henry...I'm glad I had you." Rose tried to quiet her sobs as she held up her hand to her mouth, the other arm snaking Regina's shoulders, she leaned her head there and clung tight. Regina kept talking, not wanting anything to be left unsaid. "I loved you so much, I couldn't even bring myself to change your name here in Storybrooke...I love you both so much."

Suddenly, a revelation struck Emma who emerged from her parents' hug. "You may not be strong enough, by yourself," she began addressing Regina "but maybe _we_ are." Her eyebrows shot up as if to say: _well, what are we waiting for?_ The others were quickly ushered away to a safer spot.

Emma's light magic soon sprouted forth and the two struggled to contain the immense surge. Soon they began to convulse wildly. But a smile began to test Regina's features and they both grew in confidence.

With a powerful blast, they were all swept away, their backs, hitting the cold rock walls of the mine as they were knocked to their feet unconscious.

The diamond was now rendered inactive, it dropped to the ground.

The Charmings rushed to their daughter as Regina plucked the harmless stone. "We did it!" breathed Emma.

"Yes, we did." Regina agreed.

"I gotta hand it to Henry. He's right about a lot of things." David said.

Emma knew more about that than anyone. "Yes, he is. Isn't that right, kid?" They all turned expectantly to where he should have been, but found no one.

"Henry?" Emma called out. "Rose?" the teenage girl had disappeared too without a trace, they must have been knocked out longer than they thought. Soon a chorus of "Henry? Rose? Where are you?" was heard from the mines. Armed with their flashlights, the group began their worried search.

Emma reaches down and finds Henry's bag, it's strap cut. "Emma, what is it?" Mary Margaret asked.

"They took them." she replied stiffly.

* * *

 **Elsewhere, Storybrooke Pier.**

Greg and Tamara were leading down a struggling Rose and Henry whose hands were bound for good measure. To their credit, the kids were putting up quite the fight. "Relax, kids." Tamara explains. "We're not going to hurt you."

"Yeah right," retorted the girl, her red hair coming in disarray.

"Just everyone we love," Henry reminds them. "And you tried to blow up Storybrooke."

Tamara turned to them now as they kept walking. "True, but that was never the point."

"It wasn't?" asked Henry, completely bewildered, trying hard to keep up both physically and psychologically.

"Let us go, assholes." came Rose's spitting remark.

"Shut up." Greg only waved the gun warningly at her. "You know, we came here to destroy magic, but then we found something more important. Something that changed everything," He pulled Henry closer, "You."

They were very close to the dock now, the seawater permeating the air. Rose wanted to fight; she could have thrown her knees and elbows out, stomped her feet, bit at them, scratched at them. She would have reeled her fists in and hit them square on Greg's mouth and Tamara's nose. But she didn't, they had a gun and while she could've handled herself, she never would have risked Henry's safety.

Regina and the Charmings caught up to them, only to see Greg throwing the last magic bean into the sea and opening up a portal to god only knows where. They rushed to the scene. "Henry! Rose!" they called after them.

They hear Rose give a strangled yelp as she was dragged with a frightened Henry to the spinning portal. Greg, Tamara, Rose and Henry leaped into the opening and disappeared; the portal closing instantly behind them to the chagrin of their rescue party only moments too late.

* * *

 ** _Some time ago before the first Dark Curse. The Enchanted Forest._**

 _A seven year old girl with impossibly red hair was screaming bloody murder inside the palace. Her screams turned into squeals of delight, as a young, dark haired woman assaulted her sides with tickling fingers._

 _The red-headed girl was a princess of a kingdom far away, she wore her long hair in ribbons that always gave the impression to be coming loose. Her pink dress rumpled as her little body stretched across the woman's knees, her bones were light as a bird's, her bright cheeks were fresh peaches and cream._

" _Do you yield?" The woman questioned._

" _Yes!" the small girl tittered, tears in her eyes._

 _The little girl's sister watched, amused from the sidelines, leaning against the dress maker's mannequin and inspecting the rich cloths._

 _The woman halted her ministrations and clutched the laughing girl to her chest, rocking her gently. The two young girls were her only companions now ever since the news of her engagement; even her father was limited to a few appearances as she was prepared for the journey to King Leopold's kingdom._

 _Regina was to become the new mother of the two girls. The elder, Snow White, was gentler, more subdued; at eleven she already had a mind of her own, if a little too well-meaning and meddlesome. Snow's hair was the darker of the two, shifting from brown to black._

 _Regina, however, much preferred the younger sibling. Snow White's sister, Rose Red had become her favourite in a very short time. She had seen a kindred soul inside the youngest, she was wilder, free-spirited, more prone to laughter or fits of tantrums. But she was all the more giving of herself, she was open and unrestrained._

 _It was Snow who remembered her mother whereas Rose did not. Rose Red had nothing and no one to compare Regina to, and thus accepted her more easily, and wholeheartedly. She loved without caution; true, pure and simple. "I love you, Regina." the girl whispered in her ear like a secret and Regina kissed her cheek. "I'm glad you're going to be my new mother."_

" _ **Our**_ _, new mother." interrupted her sister, fixing her hair in the reflection of a metal vase._

 _Regina merely smiled slightly, and got up from their seat, pulling Rose along. The servants and dress-makers continued working, holding up pieces for her to look over, stitching and hemming fabrics, attaching beading..._

 _Regina stepped up unto the pedestal for the seamstresses to make their final adjustments, the crinkles on her dress Rose had made during their play together were smoothed down. She was being fitted for her wedding gown, and her elated mood sank. The joy, draining out of her._

 _Rose Red noticed this and gave a gentle tug on her hand, peering up at the woman with inquisitive eyes and a frown._

" _Wow!" Snow gasps, as she faces her, the girl's tiny chest expanding in delight. Her eyes were large, absorbing the beautiful dress on her friend. "You are most certainly the fairest of them all!" she declares happily._

" _Thank you, dear." Regina replies, turning back to the mirror. She could hardly recognise herself in all the white; she was drowning silently and she couldn't claw up for air._

" _I hope for my wedding day, I will be as beautiful." the pale bow on Snow's head bobbed along with her admiring words._

" _I'm sure you will be." The wedding will commence in less than a week, but the soon to be Queen had already felt dead inside. Her mother crushed her heart the night she did Daniel's; and even the love of her new daughters were not to be enough to validate the sins of the Mother. She doubts that anything will, or if her heart could ever feel whole once more._

* * *

Emma was loudly protesting in the arms of David who held her back from jumping from the pier. Emma knew it would have been futile to do so, her mind denying the disappearance of her son once more. "We have to follow them, there has to be a way." she grunted.

Regina was exasperated, "Not only do we not know where they went, but Hook stole the only other bean that will get us to them!"

"I don't care!"

"Without it, there's no way to find follow."

"There has to be, we can't let them just take our kids!"

"They've taken Henry?" ask Gold as he strolled in with Belle on his arm, an alarmed look on their faces.

"And Rose." said David, finally letting his daughter go. "You're the Dark One, do something."

Emma pleaded,"Gold, help us."

"There's no way, I've spent a lifetime trying to cross worlds to find my son." He explained. "There's no way in this world without a portal."

"So that's it?" Regina demanded coldly, a hard glint in her dark eyes. "They're gone forever?"

"That's my sister you're talking about!" Mary Margaret shouted, "And my grandson! The only ones I have, and I will not let them go." her voice trembled, a flash of pain in her features. David rubbed her back, consoling her.

"I refuse to believe that." Regina addressed Gold, looking out into the waves, something caught her and Belle's attention.

"What is that?" Belle queried.

Emma sees in the distance the white sails on a tall mast, a ship coming to meet them. "Hook." she answers, relief in their veins.

The Jolly Roger docks into port, it's captain setting anchor. "The hell are you doing here?" Emma called as Killian Jones descended his ship.

"Helping." he answered flippantly.

"Well, you're too late."

"Am I?" he said, pulling out a purse from his belt.

"I thought you didn't care about anyone but yourself?"

"Maybe I just needed reminding that I could," he says, handing her the purse which held the bean. "Besides, now I finally prove to the princess that I can turn from my bad ways. Where is Rose Red, anyhow?"

"She's been taken, her and Henry." said Snow, with a worried tone.

"Taken?" Jones balked, his blue eyes widening.

Emma pulled the bean from the purse, their one saving grace. "Enough messing around," said Regina with ferocity. "Let's go save them."

"But didn't you save the town?"

"We already did." said David from beside his wife. "But Greg and Tamara took those two while we were unconscious."

"They were pulled through Greg and Tamara's portal." Emma clarified, looking up at Hook expectantly.

Killian nodded his head, "I offer my ship and services to help follow them."

Regina shook hers, "Well, that's great, but how will we track them?"

"Leave that to me." Gold affirmed. "I can get us where we need to go."

"Then let's do it!" Mary Margaret breathed happily, and one by one, they boarded the ship.

Captain Hook's ship had seen better days, but it still looked to be sturdy and capable of their journey ahead. The ex-elementary school teacher sucked in a hesitant breath. "Regina," Mary Margaret called.

The darkly clad mayor met her look, "What?" she said tiredly.

Mary Margaret rubbed her hands up and down Regina's black sleeves, in hopes to give her some comfort. "We'll find them." came her fixed response. "I know we will. We'll get them both back. I...know I'm not your favourite person, I know I'm not even Rose's favourite sister, but I still love her and I won't give up. Not on her, not on Henry." Regina tried to appreciate the words that were given to her, but found it impossible to dull the edge she felt in her bones.

Regina nodded numbly, anxiety, clutching at her chest, her mouth pursed hard, she notices Belle saying her goodbyes to Gold.

The Dark One strolls aboard the pirate's ship, "So, you're done trying to kill me?"

"I believe so." was Hook's cold reply.

"Excellent." Gold said with a dark smile. "Then you can live." With a wave of his hand, a dark violet smoke dissipates to reveal a magical artifact, one of the many Rumpelstiltskin had collected over the many years of being the Dark One. "Your highness," he said turning to Mary Margaret. "If you would do us the honour?"

Snow stepped forward hesitantly, sparing a glance to her husband.

Gold only scoffed. "You're the one who's their closest biological relative, I'm sure they both ended up in the same place...probably."

"I get blood magic." she said bitterly, "It's just that we've had a bad history with pricking fingers on magical relics." She huffed, looking to David while quickly wrenching a glove off of her hand. Deftly, she pressed her index finger on the needle, giving a pointed look to Gold for emphasis. It pierced her skin, crimson blood dripped down the instrument as her friends looked on, fascinated.

She let a few drops fall on the white globe, the red of her blood forming an identifiable mist from inside of it, twisting as it took shape. It spun slowly until it exhibited strange land masses, and perhaps bodies of water that were unfamiliar to her.

"Where is that?" Regina asked. "Where were they taken?"

 _No, not there...anywhere but there…_ was what came to the pirate's mind. He remembered a voice, a threat made once upon a time, " _There's nothing here for you but death,"_ it said.

Hook and Gold shared an ominous knowing look. Holding back some venom, Hook spat "They're back where I first met our Princess, they're in Neverland."

* * *

/ **A/N** :

Hey everyone, this is my contribution to the OUAT universe hopefully you'll like it.

So everything is still pretty vague, we don't know a lot about Rose yet as a character, but we should get to know her a lot better soon in the next chapters. Please keep reading!

Honestly, the Peter Pan arc had probably been one of the best seasons in OUAT. Because I love Robbie Kay's character too much, I will be changing his origins. So that's something to look forward to.

As always, please review, the encouragement and insight really means a lot. PM me if you want to talk abut everything and nothing at all. :)

I do not own any characters you might recognise, they are the property of Disney. I do own my OC (Rose).

Many thanks! And happy fanfic hunting!

-HannahBananasxx


	2. Heart of the Truest Believer

**Chapter Two - The Heart of the Truest Believer**

* * *

'" _ **The greatest of all mysteries...The heart**_ _**of the truest believer."'**_

* * *

 ** _Not so many years ago._**

 _Emma remembers when Henry was born, it haunted her for so long. The memory cut her like a knife slipped between her ribs. His cries were enough to stir the deepest of her dormant dreams and desires. All the walls she had built after years of bouncing around the foster system suddenly crumbled, and she refused to look at him. It took everything she had to keep her arms to her side and not to reach for the crying infant._

 _I can't keep him._

 _She thought to herself. It was a mantra. The doctor tells her that she could still choose differently, he cradles the baby in his arms, waiting expectantly._

 _It was not too late to choose differently._

 _The baby won't stop crying. His crying left her shaking, her ache multiplying by the second. The pain of giving birth, of all her failures, they were nothing compared to that single moment of choosing to let him go._

The words poured from her lips, " _I can't be a mother."_

* * *

 **Present Day.**

Henry wakes with a loud grunt, he is drenched from head to toe. Beside him was a soft moan from his disoriented aunt. At sixteen, Henry thought Rose was too young to be anyone's aunt, but there she was, laying beside him on the ground; she followed and let herself be taken to watch out for him. Henry loved Rose, he wanted to grab her and get away from Greg and Tamara, to run back to his family, but Greg saw him coming.

"Nuh-uh-uh." Greg denied him, wrenching him back by the back of his coat, "Slow down, pal. You've got nowhere to go."

Rose was still on the ground, she must have hit her head hard.

Tamara let out a sigh of relief. "We made it." she said triumphantly, her dark skin glistened with the lagoon water which spat them out. "Mission accomplished." she smiled next to Greg.

"Are you sure about that?" Henry questioned. "'Cause my mom's coming to get us. Both of them."

"Take a look around, kid." Greg began circling him, "You see any clocktowers? You're a long way from Storybrooke."

Rose began to stir. She clawed the sand and tried to lift herself up. The two braids on either side of her hair were loose, the red hair plastering her face and neck. She rubbed the side of her temple, eyes bleary, another moan bubbled to the surface.

"It doesn't matter, my family's been to the Enchanted Forest before, and they can get here again." Henry said with confidence just as Rose went into a fit of garbled wails.

"No." she whimpered, as she took in her surroundings, the trees, the sand banks, the rock formations. They were all entirely too familiar. "No, no no no!" she screamed, kicking at the ground and raking her fingers through her hair.

"You goddamn idiots! Do you know what you just got us into?" Rose screamed half-crazed. Her state of distress scared Henry as he ran over to her, taking her hands from ripping out her hair.

"Shut up!" Greg said threateningly.

Faint howling grew nearer now, louder than before. Yips and hollering came from the darkness of the jungle as Henry, Greg and Tamara looked for the origin of the sounds. Rose quickly pushed Henry behind her, her breaths turned into a growl, she looked straight ahead with an expression Henry had never before seen on her. Half-petrified, half-ferocious.

"Look around, Henry. We're not in the Enchanted Forest." Tamara snapped.

"No. This is much worse." Rose continued harshly. "This is Neverland."

"Neverland?" Henry said from behind her. "You're here to destroy Neverland?"

Tamara grinned smugly until Rose scoffed. "Let's see you not screw that up." She never could keep quiet when told with all that angst bottled inside a sixteen year old's body for twenty-eight years.

"Shut it, Princess." Tamara glowered. She eyed the private school uniform the girl wore: the ripped stockings and banged up knees, the tie coming undone over a white button down shirt, the stained skirt and the dirtied blazer... It all shouted of her privilege in Storybrooke protected by the magic of the Evil Queen.

"Bite me, bitch." came the teen's reply.

Tamara ignored her, "This is the motherload of magic." she elaborated. "Where's the communicator? We need to contact the Home Office" she asked Greg.

Greg handed it over rummaging their bag, "Here you go, T."

"An office in a jungle? Huh." Henry spoke, unconvinced. "Who works there?"

"Who we work for is not your concern, kid." Greg said, shouldering the bag. "Just know that they take care of us."

"Do they?" Henry began.

"You're being played and you don't even know it. You're as dumb as you look. It's a good thing we didn't keep you." Rose snarled, earning her a piercing look from Greg.

"Did they tell you how to get back home after you destroy magic?"

"We don't ask questions, we just believe in our cause." Greg spoke as if he didn't have a mind of his own, as if he was prepared to deceive himself to get his revenge.

"Greg? I'm not getting a status light on this thing." Tamara said from behind him, showing the broken walkie.

"Did you check the batteries?" he said, opening the case, only to have nothing but sand spilling out of it.

Rose started to snicker uncontrollably. _Of course they would._ She thought.

"What do you know?" Tamara demanded from Rose, taking her by the lapels and shaking her. "What the hell is this?" asked Tamara.

"A game." came Rose's only answer.

"It's a good thing you don't ask any questions." remarked Henry. The girl and the boy were wrenched forward and told to walk and an unsettling feeling came over Tamara.

* * *

 **Elswhere. The Neverseas.**

"The irony…" Hook says. The Jolly Roger was slowing down as Hook takes her helm.

"What irony?" asks Regina.

The Captain sighs, "Oh, I spent more time than I care to remember trying to leave this place so that I could kill Rumplestiltskin. All those years, your Princess went missing before your curse? She spent it here. Kept me some company too, I called her my friend for a while, we have a long history."

Regina eyed him suspiciously, she knew how slippery the pirate was when he needed to be, she also hopped that her step-daughter would have known better when dealing with him, but said nothing.

Hook continued, "And here I am, sailing right back into its heart with Rumplestiltskin as my guest of honour and the girl trapped here again. It's not quite the happy ending I was hoping for." Regina saw Hook's eyes flicker to Emma for a moment before looking straight ahead again.

Regina gave a sigh of her own, there was an unexpected softness in her voice as she spoke, "Greg Mendell said something funny to me. He said I'm a villain, and that villains don't get happy endings. You believe that?" _Heroes and villains all stuck on one leaky boat, there's a joke there somewhere._

Hook steered his ship straight ahead, an eye to the horizon. "I hope not, or we've wasted our lives."

"Tell me about her, Rose, what happened to the both of you on this island?" she queried.

"More than enough." he said smiling, "We weren't always on the same side, sometimes we didn't even trust each other. But we pulled through, I trust her with my life and I hope someday she'll say the same."

Regina smiled, a faraway look in her eyes as she tried to picture Rose from her missing years, there on that rock. "I didn't even know this was where she ended up. The night of her sixteenth birthday she disappears, we thought something bad had happened to her; worst case scenario was that she died, best case: she ran away. Then she returns six years later not having aged a day? Just like that." Regina enunciates with a snap of her fingers, "When she got back, just a few months before the curse...she didn't say anything to anybody, just ran from the palace, away from Snow, away from me and set up a cabin in the woods somewhere... I don't know what happened to her, she never told us anything. She never used to like being alone, and now, it feels like she can't get away enough." Regina held herself, rubbing her shoulder. She was, for the minute, exposed.

"Look," He said hesitantly, he knew she needed answers, knew she worried about the princess, "it's not my story to tell. When she's ready, she'll tell you." Hook finished.

* * *

Back in Neverland, Greg was lighting a small fire they built in a clearing. Rose was on her ass nervously looking around at every sound, her hands were bound tighter, she quietly wondered why it didn't disappear when she thought it so. Tamara was eyeing her, a feet or two away.

"We making s'mores?" Henry asked, attempting to make light of their situation. Rose leaned her cheek on her knee, tucking her legs closer to her chest.

"No." Greg said with a frown, "Building a signal. Help me gather some dry leaves. We need to let the home office know that we're here." he says, turning to Tamara who was growing impatient.

She knew the girl knew something but wouldn't tell, however, she wasn't going to resort to violence. Not yet. "And what if that's not enough? What if the empty communicator wasn't an accident?"

"Don't let the kid get in your head." Greg reminds her eyeing the red-headed teenage brat. He hears a rustling in the leaves, turning his head. From the foliage emerges a group of teenagers, armed with weapons, cloaked in dark hoods which blended into the greenery. They were immediately surrounded. "Who are you?"

Rose and Henry sprang to their feet. She tenses, pulling Henry once more behind her, a heated look in her eyes, her hair prickling. She knew who they were, knew they would come.

"We're the Home Office." replies the tallest of the boys, he shouldered a heavy looking club, a long, thin scar running down the middle of his thin face. The boys were thin, dirty, but built solidly, the jungle having made them harder than the rocks. "Welcome to Neverland."

"The Home Office is a bunch of teenagers?" said an incredulous Tamara.

"They're not teenagers. They're the Lost Boys." Henry said, catching on.

"Henry, keep quiet." scolded Rose who stared down the primitively armed militia, Henry held harder onto the back of her blazer. Despite how crudely made, Rose knew of the poison that likely coated the tips of the blades, one small nick was enough to kill.

"Look at that," Felix said, as if only noticing her for the first time. "Our Princess is home boys! And she brought the catch of the day."

"What are they talking about, Rosie?" Henry piped up.

"Nothing. Shush."

"Why do the Lost Boys want to destroy magic?"

"Who said we wanna destroy magic?" said the one with the scar.

"That was our mission." rejoined Greg.

"So you were told. Yes." he said looking bored. "Now the boy."

Rose snarled, "Over. My. Cold. Dead. Body."

"Tut, tut, tut. Princess. You know _he_ won't be pleased."

"Well your boyfriend can go screw himself." she retorted, acid in her mouth.

"Hand him over." the Lost Boy said.

Tamara interrupted them, "Not unless you tell us the plan—for magic, for getting home."

The Lost Boy smiled wickedly, "You're _not_ getting home."

"Then you're not getting the boy." Greg spoke.

Rose backs her and Henry quietly as the Lost Boy chuckles "Of course we are." Greg and Tamara stepping in front of them are preparing to get into a fight, but they didn't know how outmatched they were or how perilous the jungle is.

They hear a strange roaring from above, a sound that chills the princess' blood. Greg looks up as something comes flying from the sky. It is a dark, disembodied shadow with glowing purple eyes, merciless, as it quickly rips Greg's shadow from him. He screeches in agony just before he collapses to the ground and dies. Greg's shadow is carried off by it, flying away.

Rose, who was concentrating on her binds, imagines herself free, and in that same moment, the zip ties around her wrists disappear completely, leaving only angry marks where her skin was rubbed raw. Her second of victory doesn't last long, however, as she sees the boys coming.

"Run!" Tamara shouts from behind them as the boys sprint out into different directions. Rose was relentless as she spirits her and Henry away, her speed, unmatched as she half-carries Henry whose shorter legs falter.

"Get the boy." The Head Lost Boy yells as their game begins, while another shoots an arrow that flies straight into Tamara's back. She is winded and slumps to the forest floor, her life seeping out from the wound. The pain is nothing she's ever felt before. The poison is quick, but her death will be slow.

Henry and Rose take to the jungle at break-neck speed. She was running too fast; Henry couldn't keep up, and she couldn't carry him forever. They haven't slowed their pace down and the minutes seem like hours as the vines and the leaves whip past them. When Henry trips, he takes Rose down with him.

They tumble among the scattered leaves and thick roots of the undergrowth. She lands on her ankle badly, yowling, a flash of pain emits from her ankle. She doesn't think it's broken, but it seems heavily sprained, any movement, any pressure applied sends her down to one knee. She pants, grabbing Henry's small shoulders. "Are you okay?" she asked frantically.

He nodded in response.

"Listen to me, I can't run anymore." she said, Henry was already shaking his head. "Henry, Henry, listen. You have to run, as far as you can. I'll stay here and hold them back to buy you some time." The girl's amber eyes, were steely, sweat began to trickle from her head.

"I can't, not without you." He said, his voice was small, about to cry. He buried his head on her shoulder.

"Yes, you can. I'll find you, you know I will. Be brave kid, and believe in me." Rose spoke more determined. She pressed a kiss to his hair and shoved him forward. "Go." she said, her ran and didn't look back.

Rose stood up on both feet, grabbing a long, fallen branch, she crouched and went into a defensive position. She winced through the pain. She braced herself, her bones were now steel, her muscles, wires. The dirt on her face made her look wilder, the mud which streaked her skin and clothes were her stripes.

It wasn't long at all until the Lost Boys stumbled unto her, the one with the scar-the one she knew as Felix-approached her; the others knew to keep their distance.

"Was it worth it?" Felix asked, semidetached, "You risked everything to escape, and now you're back."

"You tell me." the girl replied coolly.

" _You abandoned us_."

"I asked you to come with me!" she yelled, distraught.

"And betray him?" he said, the scar on his face more visible now that his hood had fallen. Rose was silent for a moment, a moment exploited by Felix who swung at her with his club. She dodged the attack by mere inches, "You're rusty, Princess. How long has it been?"

"Not that long, capable enough to best you." she rushed forward, ignoring the scream of the sprain in her ankle, thrusting her makeshift weapon to his stomach. It connected slightly as he managed to turn his body in the last minute, but it tore a hole in his tunic. She threw her arm back, punching him in the jaw.

He countered by striking her shoulder with the butt of his club. She was jolted, but gritted through the attack, her stick sweeping at his feet. His feet swept out from under him, Felix was sent to the ground. She advanced on him, but was caught off-guard as Felix started laughing.

"What?" she said.

"Peter Pan never fails." said Felix with a sly grin, looking at something just past her.

"Miss me, Tiger?" said an all-too-familiar voice from behind her, one which shot through Rose with equal parts thrill and dread.

Rose Red whipped her head around, only to meet a cloud of dust which blew right into her face, rendering her fast asleep, barely glimpsing a crooked grin through her long lashes. Before the girl could crumple to the hard ground, lean but strong arms slipped past her shoulders and held her up. A chest clad of forest green cradled her for a few seconds, cool breaths fanning the hair from her face.

The boy of about seventeen or eighteen leaned in to whisper in her ear. "You're back where you belong, love, with me." His brown hair was mussed and windswept, his light eyes, staring softly at her. Peter Pan had his prize once more and she brought back the missing piece of the puzzle, he was smiling now, ecstatic. "We'll be forever this time."

Now that their princess was back, it was as if a wild spirit fluttered into Pan's heart again and he became that much more alive. Felix hadn't seen him this way in decades. He steps forward to take the girl from him, it was all going according to plan. Peter took one last look on her before relinquishing the sleeping girl to his second-in-command. "I'll be careful." Felix promised him.

"Our princess didn't bruise you too bad, did she Felix?" Pan asked smugly.

"Just my ego." Felix grumbled.

"Take her back to camp then come join us." Peter Pan turned away, but put a finger to his chin, remembering something. "Oh, and give this to our old friend Rumpel, will you, when you find him?" he said, Pan snapped his fingers and a straw doll dangled right under Felix's nose.

Felix pocketed the strange toy, "And the boy? Henry?" He nodded towards the sleeping girl, "She tried to protect him."

"Then we'll just have to rub it in her face when I catch him." Peter Pan took a dark cloak handed to him by another lost boy, he tied a scarf around his neck, obscuring the vial of pixie dust from view, he slapped some dirt on his cheeks and completed his disguise. "Let's get him boys!" Pan crowed, raising his dagger and running off into the night.

* * *

Henry didn't know of the adventure waiting for him.

The pixie dust was running short, the ex-Lost Boy the flew beside Henry points to a clearing between the dense Neverland trees, it seemed a better landing strip than any.

They don't land gracefully, and both more or less fall flat on their face; groaning as the got to their feet.

Henry laughs, his worries about Rose and his family were forgotten for a second."See? If you believe, anything is possible."

The older boy looks down at his smiling face and offers a smile of his own. "You couldn't be more right, Henry."

Henry becomes confused, his smile falls. "How... How'd you know my name? I never told you." He takes a step back.

"Let's make it a game. A puzzle to solve." The Lost Boy says, his face almost victorious in the pale light of the moon.

"You lied to me." Henry realises, "You _are_ a Lost Boy. You work for Pan."

"Not exactly." he says, stepping close to his face, "I _am_ Peter Pan."

"But you told Greg and Tamara that magic was bad, that you'd help them destroy it. Why?"

"Because I needed their help. And it's so much easier to get people to hate something than to believe." was Pan's answer.

"Why did you bring me here?" His voice quivers at it raises.

Peter Pan begins to pace, dispassionately. "For quite some time, I've sought something extremely important. Something more elusive than the greatest of all mysteries."

"What?" Henry wanted answers, he stared Pan down, watched his every move.

"The heart of the truest believer." Pan meets his eyes, it challenged him and held something dark within its depths. The older boy proceeds to knock on the base of a tree, three small taps that would have gone unnoticed on any other night. "And when you took that pixie dust, Henry, and jumped off that cliff, you proved yourself. You are the lucky owner of that very special heart. And now? You, and it, are mine." He points to Henry, then to himself, emphasising each enunciation before pulling out a dagger from his belt, holding it aloft.

Henry didn't know what he would do next, the sound of the unsheathing blade terrorising him. "Come on, boys!" shouted Pan. Sure enough, a dozen or so lost boys came stalking out from the wilderness and the shadows of the Neverland, they gripped their weapons tightly and surrounded him, their hoods still in place. Pan himself, was madly gleeful, the air around him electrified. "Let's play!"

* * *

/ **A/N** :

So Rose's identity is slowly being revealed. I hope you guys enjoy trying to unravel her secrets and as much as piecing it together.

As always, please review, the encouragement and insight really means a lot. PM me if you want to talk abut everything and nothing at all. :) Any questions? Comments?

I do not own any characters you might recognise, they are the property of Disney. I do own my OC (Rose).

Many thanks! And happy fanfic hunting!

-HannahBananasxx


	3. Lost Girl: part I

**Chapter Three - The Lost Girl**

* * *

 ** _"I'm not sure this is a world I belong in anymore. I'm not sure that I want to wake up."_**

 ** _― Gayle Forman, If I Stay_**

* * *

 ** _Somewhere, a very long time ago._**

 _She had cried herself to sleep, the tax of the day had taken its toll. She was exhausted in more ways than one and when she awoke, she began to cry again. The girl was unbelievably tired, she had no idea where she was, and she didn't know what to do. The girl shivered among the trodden forest earth._

 _Her fine dress was tattered along the skirt, ripped in some areas, beginning to pull apart in others, the hem of it permanently stained in the mud and filth of the forest, accumulated by the many hours the girl had ran about._

 _He found her there, her torso sprawled across a moss covered log. Her arms covering her red head, her cheek felt the roughness of the dead wood. The boy fell from the sky, clad in brown and green. His shadow pulled him to her. It had never done that before. It had been drawn so inexplicably to her sorrow._

 _The girl noticed him, acknowledging his presence as he broke a twig underfoot. She scampered back, but the fire in her eyes told him she was prepared to scrap with any ill-intending folk. She was far from meek._

 _He was bewitched, had never met a creature like her before. She was neither bird nor faerie for she had no feathers or wings; though she was built like one. Her bright, scarlet hair out-dazzling the plumage of the Neverbird, her slight frame shouting to take flight._

 _She was not a mermaid for she had no tail or scales, but with her fine lines and smooth edges, the boy wondered if she could out-perform the rest._

 _She was probably a jungle cat, he decided; the tilt and colouring of her eyes would suggest so, even if she had no stripes or spots. The teeth she bore-though no sharper than his, could probably tear his flesh; her fingers-dirt-ridden as they are, could probably claw her way into his heart._

 _The girl was more ferocious than any he'd encountered. But her dangerous beauty dared him, she presented to him an awfully big adventure. He supposed he'd be honoured if she chose to sharpen her claws with his bones as his blood trilled with the excitement to draw nearer to her._

 _She eyed his extended arm warily; but the way he smiled at her, excitedly, and cooed for her to take his hand left her feeling defenceless. The boy appeared to be a being like an anticipated breath, held and not known when to be released. Uncertain, she took his hand. "Peter." she heard him say. Her eyes filled with light, looking into his as if to ascertain the mystery of the stars, with wonder, and joy,_

" _Rose." blew her unguarded breath._

* * *

 **Neverland, the Present.**

He left Henry back at the camp while his Lost Boys kept him distracted. Pan needed his allegiance and reconnecting him immediately with the Princess would pretty much throw away his carefully concocted plans. He needed time to think about how he was going to play his game, especially when it required him to be several dozen steps ahead. No, Henry could stew for a while with the boys; he needed to feel alone and abandoned, bringing Rose to him right away will only bring him hope. The child asked too many questions, ones which he artfully dodged.

He became distracted, idled for a little bit too long in his Thinking Tree where he kept her slumbering. He stayed behind to really look at her: examining her face, her hands, her proportions closely. He looked for any misplaced lines on her face, and found her still very much the same and unchanged. She had not grown, nor aged in the time she had been gone. _Just as we thought_. Finally satisfied, he kissed her warm fingers.

Just as he was departing, he saw a glint of gold on her wrist, a shiny bracelet with many charms. It tinkled in the air. Before thinking better of it, he unclasped the chain and pocketed the thing, taking a little piece of her with him as he crept back into the humid jungle night.

Truthfully, when his shadow informed him that the heart of the Truest Believer was on the island and that he'd brought back his missing Princess - Peter could hardly believe it. They had been preparing for the boy, not the girl's return.

Pan had loved his First Lost Girl, his Rose. They belonged together, knew each other better than anyone, but her love had faltered and it had broken his heart. The thought of her betrayal fanned the fury in his chest.

 _But it doesn't matter now. I'll win her back. I always do, I always win. And I never fail._ He knew she would come back one day, it was simply a matter of time and he had all the time in the world to wait on his island; but he always believed it would be after he regained his former strength and taken the Believer's heart for his own. He would have to deal with her soon, but not before he had a little chat with ' _The Saviour'_.

He teleported himself on the edge of the Savior's camp, observing the sleeping forms of the men and women. Gauging them.

Emma Swan hears a chorus of crying; the wailing of babies and the whimper of children, it wakes her from a rather unpleasant sleep. She throws off the scratchy blanket, immediately going for her weapon. The metal sword sheens in the dim canopy of trees. She turn to the figures of her parents, sleeping soundly in each other's arms; they were handsome, picture-perfect even as they dozed. "Guys, wake up!" she calls. They don't stir.

The Savior turns her back to the campfire, resigned to go trekking into the wilds herself. She followed the beckoning cries which intertwined with the sound of nocturnal beasts.

Beyond her shoulder is a young, smooth voice, "You hear it too?" it whirls around, sword pointed to the intruder who calmly goes on, "You're Emma, right? I wonder why _they_ can't hear the crying?"

"Who are you?"

The boy was leaning on a tree carelessly, fiddling with an old dagger. "Oh, did I forget to introduce myself?" He blinks a few times, as if just remembering. "I'm Peter. Peter Pan." he smiles a boyish smile. It would have looked completely innocent on any other boy. But this was no ordinary boy. Some boys refused to grow up. This was he.

"Where's Henry?" she moves quicker than he thought, pinning him to the tree; her sword held to his throat.

He recalls a time when he played a similar game with his Lost Girl, only she slept in his tree at the moment, without her stripes. His breathing changed as the adrenaline rushed in, he laughs. "You have fire," he contemplated. "I like fire."

"Where's my son?"

"Henry's still alive, if that's what you're worried about. And so is the girl, though you don't seem to care about her at the moment, seeing as you never asked." He was toying with her, but it didn't make her feel any less guilty.

She ignored his remark, "Why the hell did you take him?"

"He's a very special boy, Emma." Pan said it like he was explaining the concept to a child.

"I know. That doesn't answer my question. What do you want with him? Or with Rose?" she tried to get what he was teasing.

But Pan eluded her question. "I came here to see who I was up against. ' _The Savior'_. Gotta say, I'm not disappointed."

"What do you say now? You're gonna tell me how I'm never gonna see Henry again?" she tried to hide her annoyance.

"No." he denied quickly. Emma had tried to tell if he was lying to her, but could not discern the emotions in Pan, nor what he was thinking of now. "I'm going to help you find him. I'll give you a map. A map that will lead you straight to your son."

The boy took out a folded bit of paper from his shirt, slightly bent. "If this is some kind of trap…"

Pan cut her off with a chuckle, "I may not be the most well-behaved boy on the island, but I always keep my promises." As he said this, for a second, she had an idea that this was about something different, something new. It unsettled her. "The path to finding Henry is on this parchment." he insisted.

"Why are you giving it to me?" she was hesitant, but lowered her sword nevertheless.

"See, it's not about finding Henry. It's about how you find him. And, Emma you're the only one who can."

The woman takes it from him and opens his 'map' only to find it empty. "It's blank." she says, irritated.

Pan elaborated, "You'll only be able to read that map when you stop denying who you really are." Emma looks down at the map, but he is gone when she looks back up.

When Regina is roused by the voice of Emma saying she had encountered Pan, the woman wondered if her reality had become a nightmare. The anxiety plagued her, fear arrived in droves. She had almost missed it, were it not so familiar and out-of-place at the same time. Before her eyes, lying in the cot beside her, was a miniature golden wind-mill, toppled on its side.

* * *

 ** _Then._**

 _She clarifies that her name was Rose Red and that she was a Princess to a noble kingdom. The Princess tells him that she had just celebrated her sixteenth birthday, but a dark and powerful magic swept her away, leaving her in the desolate forest; with her grand ball-gown still on, and her tiara perched precariously on her head._

" _Why do you cry?" the boy asks, a critical look on his features. It crumpled his smooth face. His name was Peter Pan and he was the most enigmatic person she'd come across._

" _Because," she says, "I'm lost, and I don't belong. I'm afraid my home is far away." the girl swiped at her face with her arm, drying her tear-stricken cheeks. The wind was picking up chill, the night was slowly descending upon them._

" _So is mine," he says, "but I always come back and I can take you with me." His brown hair was short, swept over one side of his forehead, his brows fairly expressive. His nose, was small, but it complemented the shape of his face. She found it funny the way his large ears stuck out like that, but it was not unflattering. His lips were baby pink and pulled into an honest smile. His eyes were a lovely fern green. His features were boyish and charming, altogether it pulled for quite an attractive face that flustered Rose._

" _Why would you do such a thing?"_

 _He just laughs at her without effort, but with an attractive certainty. "It's as you said, you're lost. But you don't have to be alone." he tightened his grip on her fingers, she decided they were too warm and it brought a drying in her throat. His eyes sparkled as he talked animatedly, "My home is on an island with white shores and black rocks and blue seas. It's evergreen there, and the day is always as young as you want it to be."_

 _Peter looks to the blue heavens, getting her attention, with a finger he points her to a direction. "There, that's where home is; second star to the right, and straight on 'til morning." Peter brings her to her feet quite quickly, roughly, but does not let go of her. "We'll go there now, and if you want, you can stay. I don't have that many friends and the only girls there are the faeries - but they're no fun at all, they just want to flit about all day drinking dew drops and hollowing out acorns for hats."_

The girl could not help but laugh, " _They must be very small. For their heads to fit in acorns."_

" _Why yes, they're hardly bigger than the pinky finger of a grown man."_

 _The girl had stopped crying, which pleased Peter, he was not quite sure how to comfort such weepy creatures. "Are they beautiful?" she asks._

" _Beautiful? Hmmm, yes I suppose, everything in Neverland is." he says, putting a finger to his chin. He suddenly draws her closer, like he was sharing a secret, his voice soft, "But I'll tell you something, everything beautiful there is dangerous. It's what_ ** _makes_** _them so beautiful. They make you work just to be able to admire them. Something that cannot defend itself will perish, that which is beautiful has made the effort to be so, they are admired because they survive."_

 _Rose considers this thought, if she was going to pull through anything, she would have to fight for it. She was done shedding tears for the people who treated her badly, for the place she knew deep inside she never belonged to._

" _We should leave now," Peter says, scratching his head, "while the skies are clear." he turns to her, waiting for an answer. There was a fear in his eyes. Fear that she might say no._

 _Instead, she takes his awfully warm hand. Her hair billowed as the wind gathered strength, making the leaves dance at their feet in circular waltzes. "Take me there."_

* * *

 **Now.**

Emma stared at the blank piece of parchment, with concentration, she looked so focused onto it that anyone would think it would sooner rather than later catch fire. She was getting tired of this, her elbows propped on her makeshift table, her fists keeping her head up.

Hook _tsked_ as he sat on a rock, "He so likes his games."

Regina stopped her pacing, "What game? There's nothing there." she says, gesturing to the parchment.

Hook just insisted more pointedly, "If he said there's a map on this parchment, then there is."

"Great. So if I just stop denying who I really am, whatever that means, then we'll be able to read this thing." Emma was getting more cynical by the second.

"But how do we know Pan won't use it to lead us straight into a trap?" Regina thought.

Hook stood up, "Because he doesn't need to. This whole island's his bloody trap."

David and his wife, Mary Margaret emerge from the dark jungle, their search, fruitless. "There's no sign of him anywhere." David concludes.

"Any luck with the map?" asks Mary Margaret.

"Don't hold your breath." says Regina.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Emma grimaces, irritated. She still hasn't looked away from the page.

"Don't you see what he's doing? Every second we spend talking about this is another second we're not looking for our family."

"You got a better idea?"

"Magic. If there's a lock on there, I'll find a way around it." Regina makes an attempt at grabbing the thing until Emma slams her palm down over it.

"Pan said it had to be me."

"I'd listen to Emma, love. Breaking Pan's rules would be unwise." Killian warns.

Hands on his hips, David concurs. "Sadly, I agree with the pirate."

Killian sends him a victorious smile, "I'm winning you over. I can feel it."

"And your magic doesn't exactly have a gentle touch, Regina." imparts Mary Margaret.

"Use it on the map, it might blow up in all our faces." David predicts.

"Well, that's a risk I'm willing to take." The mayor declares.

"Well, I'm not." Emma decides, standing up, the 'map' held in her hands. "If I'm the one who's supposed to figure out this thing, I need to do what Pan said." she maintains.

"Great." Regina comments snidely. Her arms crossing. The whole group was miserable, they just wanted their children back. She couldn't imagine what havoc Pan's done to Henry or Rose. She hated herself for not being able to protect them.

Instead, Mary Margaret tries to cheer them up, though at this point she was not sure how much it could do, "She'll get there." she tells Regina before turning to Emma, "Hey. Don't give up. If he's playing a game. You can win."

* * *

 ** _Then._**

 _With a bright smile from the boy, Peter took her hand and they flew. It took the breath out of her and she began laughing as the panic turned to pure delight. She felt free, and light._

 _A sheen of dust covered them, glittering as they caught the fading light._

 _Peter kept smiling as her as they went higher and higher. Her terror leaving her. The dress she had on flapped about at her sides, the shreds of which hung like ivory feathers. She spread her arms wide, mad with glee, their joy was infectious and fed off of each others'._

 _He whooped aloud as he led her, their bodies somersaulting in the air. They were like pinwheels as they spun round and round, accelerating to tremendous speeds._

 _The forest seemed so far away now; the houses, ant hills; the mountains, little peaks. She floated as if she were doing a backstroke in a lake, she took handfuls of clouds, felt them sift through her fingers. The wind carded through her long hair._

 _They flew all through the night, every second nearer to their destination. Soon enough, the clouds broke apart, the seas calmed, and the yellow sun lit up his island. From that height she could spot coves, lagoons, creeks, cliffsides, waterfalls, beaches, mountains, and more than anything, wide, tangled jungles._

 _Neverland._

 _Peter Pan and Rose Red landed on the sandy dunes of an open beach. The moment her toes touched the sand she took off in a running start. The excitement of this newfound place overpowered her._

 _She played across the sandy stretch, Peter chuckling just behind. Rose picked up scattered sandollars and sea glass, her fists full of them; not caring about the dress, she waded in the shallows where her new friend joined her. She smiled peacefully, happily as she felt the seabreeze fan her curls and her warm face._

" _I've been here before." she said abruptly, turning to Peter, "It's so familiar."_

" _It's Neverland." Peter explains, "Lost and lonely children fill it with their dreams as they lay sleeping at night. They inhabit this island until the sun rises. Neverland is different for everyone, but I've conquered it, so it obeys me."_

" _You've tamed an island? By yourself?"_

" _Heavens, no. But I was the first to claim it for my own and stay. Excepting the faeries and the native beasts, of course."_

" _But it looked the same in my dreams."_

" _Queer, how we both possess the same Neverland."_

 _Rose pursed her lips, the seawater reaching her hips as the tide drew in and out. "...Do you think it means then that we're both supposed to be here. You, and me?"_

 _Peter beamed, "Wouldn't that be grand?"_

* * *

 ** _"I half closed my eyes and imagined this was the spot where everything I'd ever lost since my childhood had washed up, and I was now standing here in front of it,"_**

 ** _― Kazuo Ishiguro, Never Let Me Go_**

* * *

 **A/N:** OK. Listen up. This is only Part 1 of Lost Girl. I know, right? Well if I didn't split it up, you would have gotten a chapter that is almost 9,000 words long. That's like the most I've ever written for one chapter, it would have been very cumbersome and I wanted to give you all a break and not just dump it all in one go. I'm really excited, I will be putting more and more scenes that will uncover Peter and Lily's past together in Neverland so stay tuned!

Yes, chapter four has already been written, but I don't think I'll be posting it until chapter five is complete and I wanted to get into the habit of doing a more regular update (which is ironic since the last update was only four days ago. I'M WAY TOO EAGER. I GUESS I'M JUST REALLY EXCITED FOR THIS UPDATE). Also, my other writing needs some catching up to do so I think I will just try and give those a bit more attention for now.

To my reviewers:

 **Natasha (guest)** :Thanks for the review! I agree wholeheartedly with you! I feel like Regina is such a great character, definitely one of their best if not the best developed character. She really grew on me, I don't understand why people dislike her; I actually find her to be the most relatable on the show. She's driven and passionate and she really apologises to no one; I think I'm a lot more attracted to the villains because they're so much fun and compelling and so damn edgy. Villains who turn into good guys but who don't lose their very essence to me is just so much more of a fascinating character study.

 **LSU lovePurple liveGold:** Yay! My first review! Just getting feedback on how much you guys love my story is the best feeling and really motivates me to do more. Thank you!

As always, please review, the encouragement and insight really means a lot. PM me if you want to talk abut everything and nothing at all. :) Any questions? Comments? Hearing from you really makes my day!

I do not own any characters you might recognise, they are the property of Disney. I do own my OC (Rose).

Many thanks! And happy fanfic hunting!

-HannahBananasxx


	4. Lost Girl: part II

**Chapter Four - The Lost Girl pt. II**

* * *

 _ **"Maybe all of her strangeness, her curse, her always feeling like an outsider, had all existed so that she could belong here, with Peter."**_

 _ **― Jodi Lynn Anderson, Tiger Lily**_

* * *

 **Neverland, present day.**

"My name is Emma Swan." she said, willing the map to do something. Anything.

Killian cut in, "I'd wager the solution to Pan's riddle is a bit more complicated than that."

"Don't hold anything back." Mary Margaret said encouragingly.

Emma kept trying, "I'm Henry's mother. I used to live in Boston, and I was a bailbonds-person. I'm now the sheriff of Storybrooke."

Regina shook her head, she spoke from the tree she leaned on, "That election was a sham. Are we really doing this?"

Mary Margaret, intercepted, "Don't you think maybe you're leaving some things out?" she asks, leading.

Emma watched her parents from where she sat, "I'm the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, which apparently makes me the product of true love. I was born in the Enchanted Forest and I was sent through a portal in a tree so that I could break a curse."

Regina just rolled her eyes and ran a hand through her hair, looking bored.

"And you were able to break the curse because you're the…" David supplied.

"Come on. You don't need to be embarrassed to say it." said Mary Margaret somewhat proudly.

Killian was confused. He had no bloody clue what they were on about. "Say what?"

"The 'S' word." Regina provided, she was going to get an aneurysm if it takes this long just to solve some stupid puzzle.

Emma straightened her posture and took a breath. "I'm The Saviour." she says, quite plainly. They waited for something to appear on the page with baited breathed, and all kind of leaned in to see what would happen.

But the parchment stayed blank and they all let out their breaths, quite disappointed. "I don't get it. I said I'm the Saviour. There's nothing I've denied more than that." the blonde swears.

"No, it's okay. We'll figure it out." Mary Margaret tried.

"No, you won't." Regina, who was altogether done over this whole 'Saviour' charade snatches the parchment.

"Regina!" Emma exclaims.

"But I can." Regina continues, hovering a palm over the parchment, "I'm beginning to think there isn't a map on here. That doesn't mean it can't lead us to Henry."

"I thought we decided that using magic was a bad idea." David pressed.

Killian rejoins, "For once I agree with the prince." David looks at him oddly, "Well, I told you we're getting along."

Regina continued her magic on the item. The map begins to glow and float in the air.

"What the hell are you doing?" Emma demands.

"The locator spell." Regina answers. "Look," she says, taking out the charm from her pocket, her companions took a moment before they recognised the object. It shone in her palm, solitary, innocuous. The often heard it jangle along with a bunch of other charms on a young girl's small wrist.

"Is that-" Mary Margaret asks.

Regina inspected the thing between her fingers, "It's Rose's. I bought it for her. Pan must have taken it and placed it on my bedroll. I-I tried the locator spell on it, but it didn't work. Now, I don't know if she's here or not, I don't know if Pan's magic is shielding her or if Neverland is affecting mine. But this," she says, talking about the map, "This parchment belonged to Pan. It'll lead us to him. It's my last option. I'm going to find my family one way or another."

The parchment suddenly flew out of her hand and into the dark night beyond. The jungle felt deceptively still, but they knew all manners of danger lay before them. The night animals were out hunting, predators waited in the shadow for easy prey.

Hook sighed, "So it appears we will be venturing into the Dark Jungle after all."

"You mean the place you told us never to set foot?" Emma adds.

"That's the one." He says, his gaze still tracking the parchment.

Regina spoke from behind her, glad to be finally moving, "Well, Emma, you said you wanted to be the leader. Lead."

* * *

 _ **Neverland, a long time ago.**_

 _They had trekked back some long distance from the beach, Peter, leading the winding ways through his island. They had been walking for hours though she didn't complain. Every path was new and exciting._

 _The jungle was a canopy over their heads, the occasional bit of sunlight peeking through, this part of the island's jungle was denser, the trees grew close together, the leaves, branches,_ _and vines forming a kind of green web._

 _She was certain that were it not for Peter, she would not be able to find her way back. Peter Pan stops, a few feet ahead and turns to her. "It's just beyond here, my treehouse." At first, she sees nothing but more foliage until he sweeps some back with his arm revealing a sizeable clearing, totally and cleverly hidden away from everything._

 _To one side was a fire pit where he did his cooking, a stack of dry wood piled near, some small baskets containing dried meats or fresh fruit. To the other side was a crafting station, he had his tools littered about, a lengthy piece of rope was about half-way braided._

 _But the jewel of Peter's accomplishments was the treehouse which stood grandly in the middle of the clearing atop a huge tree, several meters in height. "Come_ _inside_ , _" he said, quite eagerly, his teeth sparkling. "I promise, you'll like it."_

 _She was awestruck as she climbed the ladder to his home, the rungs, though not expertly finished, was sturdy._

 _He offered her a hand as Rose was pulled inside, her dress making the effort a bit difficult. The interior of the treehouse was more spacious than she thought, it was filled with an assortment of Peter's things, his collections of odds and ends. He pulled out a stool for her which she gratefully sat on; Rose was graceful, her posture straight as a measure, her hands placed on her lap._

 _He can't believe he almost forgot she was royalty._

 _How was one even supposed to treat royalty?_

 _It was then that he started acting_ strangely _. He kept going back and forth around the room, pulling out different sorts of things and presenting them to her: a shiny crow's feather, the tooth of a wild boar, a pair of cracked spectacles, a strip of silk cloth. Each was displayed and thrust into her hand. It seemed to be a few of his treasured possessions for he puffed his chest out a bit as he showed each one, he radiated with a childlike pride. "They're for you_ , _" he says with a grin. Pushing his gifts to her chest. "Keep them."_

 _She shakes her head, bashfully, "I can't take them, they're yours."_

 _"And now, they're yours." he insists, he spoke confidently and quickly. "You'll have a trunk to keep your things in, and you can have my bed if you like." Peter was nodding. "I can make some room, or I'll build you another, right next to mine."_

 _"Peter…"_

 _"Anything, I'll do it. I promise, just...say you'll stay."_

 _She weighed this new proposal, her eyes shifting in thought. He held his breath. She tried to take it all in; the wild island, the magic, the spectacular treehouse, the boy in the pied tunic who looked at her with large eyes..._

 _She found herself nodding, it wasn't really that much of a decision, she felt like she had already made up her mind long before. The young girl gave a peal of laughter, nervous and jovial. "Of course I'll stay, Peter." Rose smiled._

 _The boy took her in his arms and crowed_.

* * *

Emma, Regina, Killian, David and Mary Margaret filed into the depths of the Neverland jungle. Even Hook, who prided himself as an expert of navigation, found his bearings lost. "It's Pan," he explains, batting away poking branches along the twisting path. "Neverland is connected to him, he can change anything at will, can make even the jungle itself play tricks on you. It's why my crew and I could search the island for days and never even come across a hair of the Lost Boys' camp."

They were following the map enchanted with a locator spell. It shone like a beacon in the never-ending sea of dark undergrowth. Regina could feel how heavy with magic this wood was, how old, but it seemed to be flickering, as if the life-force was just holding out. Pushing the thoughts away, she strode side-by-side with Emma,"Ready to thank me?"

The blonde replies admittedly, "Actually, yeah."

Regina was pleased. "If you'd let me do it sooner, maybe we'd have found him by now." but she halts where she stands, "Wait. He's there. Pan. I can feel his smugness." she announces, looking out warily.

David makes his way to the front, pulling out his sword, ready for a fight."Shall we? While we still have the element of surprise on our side?"

Hook sidles to Mary Margaret's side, his tone cautious, "Careful. He may look like a boy, but he's a bloody demon." Too many times had he blindly gone into the fray with Peter Pan getting the jump on him. It felt like the boy was always two steps ahead with a long sadistic streak.

Mary Margaret didn't let it affect her. "Hey. We can do this." she says before turning to Emma, "You can do this."

Emma was worried, it wasn't always that simple. "I just want them both back."

* * *

 _The boy and the girl sat by the fire, warming themselves. They had had a full day of fun and adventure and spent this time taking a break from activity._

 _Peter was gnawing on an apple until he looked at her suddenly, his brows furrowed. "What does it mean?" he asks._

 _"What's what?"_

 _"Rose. What does it mean? Your name."_

 _She had stopped combing through her mane with her fingers, she looked at him perplexedly, "It doesn't mean anything. I was named after a flower."_

 _Peter Pan chewed his lip, "I don't know if I've ever seen one. Would you describe it to me, Princess? What do they look like?"_

 _"Well, for starters, it comes in many different colours and varieties. But the ones I was named after grew in our palace and have large, vermilion buds. It's my hair, you see, it's the same colour."_

 _Peter chuckled but remained in deep thought. "Go on."_

 _"Umm, well, they were specially bred for the royal family to grow without thorns so that we may enjoy them without fearing pricked fingers."_

 _Peter hummed, his brow sinking deeper from his forehead, "Hmmm...No, that won't do at all." he sighed, talking to himself. He had a hard time imagining flowers of different sizes, colours and shapes claiming to be the same thing; claiming to be his flower, his particular Rose. He could not imagine her as anything commonplace or of others sharing her name. His Princess was beautiful and one of a kind. No, it certainly will not do._

 _"What won't do?"_

 _"I don't think we have any of those in Neverland."_

 _"Oh? I suppose they wouldn't...they were domesticated in my kingdom, you see. Though there are wild roses that grow."_

 _"Aha, I've got it!" At that, Peter perked up, snapping his fingers jumping to his feet. "Wait here."_

 _And before she knew it, Peter had disappeared, only to reappear some seconds later with something cupped in his hand. He cradled it gently, and when she peered into his hands she spied a bright-scarlet bloom with dark speckles. "The faeries call it Tigerlily, they're native to these shores, but maybe they call it something different in your tongue?"_

 _Rose looked at the blossom tucked into his palm, it looked fresh and exotic, it was fragrant and had a distinctly unique smell, sweet, but unlike the flowers back home. She was afraid to disappoint him and tried to refuse Peter gently, "Oh, it's beautiful, Peter. But, it's not the same."_

 _Peter deflated at her words, "Oh. Well, I can go looking for some. I can journey back to your forest and pluck you a rose." he offered._

 _"What about, you tell me about the Tigerlilies instead?" she proposed with a gentle smile._

 _Peter seemed to acquiesce, "They're hardy things, and take root most anywhere near water. They're useful; the bulb, the stem, and even the buds are edible; and survive all kinds of weather. They're beautiful, their spots protect them, makes them look carnivorous to foraging animals to scare them off. But I know their secret, if you dry the root, crush them and make a powder, you'll have a heady paralytic."_

 _"They're dangerous too?"_

 _"Like all things that grow around here, some are more obvious than others. You know, it's funny. I think they made a mistake when they named you. I mean, you're beautiful."_

 _Rose tried to hide her blush at his compliment. "...I don't understand?"_

 _"Beautiful things are dangerous. Pretty things are useless. But you're not pretty, Princess, you're beautiful. You're not a garden rose grown in the briars without her thorns. You're fierce and bright, like a flame or a creature with claws."_

 _"Like a Tigerlily." she mused. "You know Peter, I think you're right, I'm no garden rose for some pretty noble to admire. I'm hungry and I can fight for myself, I'm wild, and I'm reckless and I don't care!" she was excited now, standing upon the log she had leaned on by the fireside. "I'm not who they want me to be, I never was. I've tried, but I was never their Rose… Never. I think I've always been a Tigerlily."_

 _Peter's eyes were bright, stoked like the embers of a fire. He held her hand as he pulled himself onto her perch. His voice was loud, he spoke to the island itself. "Then it's settled. Neverland has claimed you for its own, Princess Tiger Lily."_

 _Peter whooped and hollered as he jumped into the air, and the princess, well, she could no longer help but finally dash decorum and join in, crowing into the heart of the Never-jungle_.

* * *

The path they walked was terrifying, the tangle of the overgrowth was so thick that you could not see more than a few feet ahead; whether a short tangent could lead to a sheer ravine or in a creek-bed.

The sounds they heard were low and ominous, Hook had told them that the island could be plagued with more beasts at any one time than they realise from poisonous snakes to large boars, wild cats and the infamous Neverbirds.

Mary Margaret chose to break the silence, they've reached an empty campsite, the fire, long put out and abandoned. There was nothing left but forgotten things, strewn about. "No one's here. Maybe your spell was wrong, Regina."

Regina laughed bitterly, "Yes. Blame me...again."

Emma climbs down from a small slope of earth, she sees a familiar looking figure just ahead of them. She recognised the coat, his jeans, the boy's head was angled skywards, oblivious to their approach.

"Guys...Hold on. Is that...Henry!"

At Emma's yell, the boy turns around with a devilish grin. It was not her son, but the Neverland King: Peter Pan.

"Hi, Emma." Pan greets. He had deliberately worn Henry's clothes to toy with them. The group looks horror-stricken as Pan eyes them coolly.

"Where the hell is Henry?" she demands.

Pan merely started walking to higher ground. "You broke the rules. That's not fair. Bad form." he comments, addressing Killian. "I expect more from you, Captain."

"Aye, and you'll get it," Killian replies, knowing too well that he had to play along with Pan's game. "I take it you have your Princess?" he says, in other words, asking after Rose's safety; much like with

The Crocodile, one had to watch their words around the demon boy.

Pan shoots Hook a knowing smile that stretches widely across his cheeks.

What the hell was happening? Regina thinks, bewildered. Her glower, darkening. His Princess? What does Rose have to do anything about it?

"Give Henry to me." Emma nearly begs.

"And bring Rose back." Mary Margaret adds.

Pan shakes his head vigorously, they were just starting to have fun. "Sorry. Can't." he says, reaching the top of the hill, "Don't you know? Cheaters never win."

With those words, the small group was immediately swarmed by hollering Lost Boys, their weapons raised, Felix, Peter's second, appearing by his side. They held torches and aimed their makeshift weapons, all looked worn with use, but incredibly lethal.

Pan looks on with a cold glee as Emma, Regina, Hook, Mary Margaret and David retreat into a circle, backs to each other in preparation.

Even with his allies, Hook didn't like his chances, "Watch out for their arrows. They're laced with dreamshade." He knew who they had been trained by, he would expect that they'd pull every dirty trick from the book and he'd do the same.

The fight erupts into chaos. They were being shot at from all sides, David tried his best to block the incoming arrows with his sword, stopping them before they got too close. His wife had drawn her bow as well, trying to incapacitate the boys, but she had missed one. Mary Margaret is almost hit, but was pushed away by David at the last moment, it just nicks his flesh, but it's already done its damage.

"David!" his wife yells.

"I'm good," he says, shrugging off the pain. "Behind you!"

Mary Margaret lets the arrow fly, pinning the boy to the tree with his hood.

Utilising her magic, Regina electrocutes some of their attackers, but careful to only do enough to neutralise them. She wasn't prepared to outright murder some young boys, not when she had a promise to keep. Though them annoying her is making it just a little bit tempting.

Killian meanwhile, comes across a familiar looking face. Gaunt, and scarred, Felix grimaces as their weapons clash, the Captain's hook catching his heavy club. "It's been a while, Captain."

Hook grunts, "Not that long, remember what I did to Rufio? Well, it's a far worse fate for you." they continue their fight.

"Not anymore worse than yours if you keep helping those 'heroes'."

"Those idiots? They just want Rose and the boy. They're not after your precious Pan. We'll leave and never bother you again."

"Nice try, Hook. But you know we don't like it when you start threatening our Mother. She and the boy are ours now. And Pan doesn't like to share."

Emma races uphill, heading towards Pan pushing aside the boys who tried to charge her until one finally tackles her and they both go rolling down the incline. Rocks and twigs and uneven earth make her landing painful. Quick as a whip, she manages to pin the assailant down, overpowering him.

"Where's Henry?! Where is he?!" Emma scared even herself with her actions, she didn't realise what she was doing until she had done it. The Lost Boy was just that, a lost boy, but one without fear, she realised how much they were all loyal to Pan, laying their lives on the line. And it struck something in her. She was a lot the same not so long ago, angry, but lost.

"Emma, are you alright?" Mary Margaret asks delicately.

There was a sharp whistle that stilled the boys from their fight and called them to their leader. Pan spoke, he remained in control of everything and everyone and his game was just starting. "Remember what I told you. That map will show you where Henry is...only when you stop denying who you really are. I'll make sure to send Henry your regards." He expected more from the 'Saviour'. The wild pack of Lost Boys head back into the night, quick as they came. They were triumphant.

* * *

The Lost Boys' Camp, Neverland.

Rose awoke from a deep slumber feeling numb, the poppies having left her slow and heavy. When she opened her eyes, she immediately recognised where she was, she would have known this place like any other part of her body. Sadness clutched at her heart, she felt defeated.

"You're finally awake." A familiar voice spoke. He stood still in a corner, melting into the shadows. But her eyes were keen.

"No thanks to you, Pan." she said, an acidity to her tone.

"Now, love, I thought we were more familiar than that? That's no way to talk to a friend. What, didn't you miss me?" he teased. He had still not come forward.

She turned her head away, trying to not let him affect her. "I left you, didn't I?"

"And now, you're back here."

"I'm only here for Henry." it was only half the truth, unfortunately. She still could not help the painful tugging from inside. Feeling this way was dangerous and it would not help her get Henry back.

She could feel his smirk. "You say that, but it's not true. It feels just like yesterday that you would have done anything for me."

Rose tried to hide herself away behind a wall of ice, her voice hard. "That was then. Before."

"But you're still you." he concluded, "The same princess that fell in love with me."

Rose scoffed. "And you're still arrogant."

"It doesn't change the fact that we have history." she didn't like the way he played with her. Everything about him seemed sharper, like a flint of amber. Cruel. She found him much changed.

"Any history we might have had, any love we might have had: died when you stopped being Peter. When Pan became nothing but a heartless demon." she bit.

"You're lying! Stop lying!" he says, suddenly snapping and emerging from the darkness to face her,

"You've always been good at that. Finding where to make someone hurt."

"I don't have a choice."

"You made one," he laughed coldly, "when you abandoned me. Tell me, are you still heartbroken?" That caught her attention.

"Are you?" she challenged.

"Everyday." his answer caught her off-guard. That sudden honesty was so very much like the boy she first met, not the demon who spoke to her now. It unnerved her to no end. "I didn't know I had a heart until you took it from me. I didn't know what pain was until you ripped it apart."

"You broke mine first." she said, crumbling.

"I suppose I did." he said, without feeling.

She swallowed thickly, in a short while he had affected her too much. "You didn't have to save me in the Dark Hollow that day." Rose confronted him, Pan be damned.

"Yes, I did." he countered. When he looked at her he looked too young. It had a quality of being lost, being naive, believing in someone completely. There was disappointment, distrust, anger, loneliness.

He felt all those things and more and she recognised them immediately.

Because she felt them too. It was not Rose Red that did this to the First Lost Boy. It was the doing of the First Lost Girl. Tiger Lily had torn out Peter Pan's heart and devoured it. Her betrayal and their subsequent heartbreak only cemented the depth of their affections that even they, did not entirely comprehend.

"Henry is waiting for you, below. But remember this, Rose Red, if you don't play the game, if you go against me, you will sorely regret it. I'm not a nice boy." he informed, before climbing down his tree-house without another look.

A startling sob made its way out of her, drawing her knees to her chest she made herself as small as possible. Once it begun, she could not stop the tears. She had not cried this way in years. One meeting down and she was already emotionally raw. Rose wanted to be strong in the way she needed to be, but she felt spent as she sobbed for some time longer.

* * *

"Maybe who you think you are isn't who you really are."

Emma looks to Mary Margaret who sat beside her, "What do you mean?"

Mary Margaret spoke always with a patience beyond her years, she couldn't help but be just that motherly, "Sometimes we think we know ourselves, but we need a push to show us the reality. That boy with the knife—you stopped fighting him. Why?"

Emma shrugged, shifting in her seat. "'Cause he was...just a boy."

Mary Margaret shook her head, not satisfied with her answer, "No. There was something else. I saw it in your eyes. Why did you stop?" she lowers her voice, for Emma sake, she wanted Emma to trust her implicitly, "Why?"

A tinge of sadness drifted into Emma, "Because when I looked at his face, I saw me."

"...Go on."

"That look in his eyes.." It all of a sudden gets harder for her to breathe, "the despair. I had it back when I was in the foster system. Just a lost little girl who didn't matter and didn't think she ever would. A little girl who cried herself to sleep at night 'cause...she wanted her parents so bad. And could never understand...why they gave her up." Emma's voice broke, tears flooding her eyes.

Mary Margaret sheds her own tears, "And then you found us. It was too late." Too late for her to be a proper mother for Emma.

"It's just, on this island...I-I don't feel like a hero or a savior. I just feel like what I've always been. An orphan." she sniffles.

But Mary Margaret shakes her shoulder, "Emma."

"What?"

"Look." Mary Margaret whispers, nodding to the discarded bit of parchment.

"What happened?" Emma gasps, as the beginnings of a picture spreads upon the parchment face like the bleeding of ink. It revealed the map of the island, detailing Pan's camp with a large 'X'.

Mary Margaret felt something in her being crushed, her chest constricting. "You accepted who you are."

Emma couldn't bear to look her mother in the eyes, "...I'm sorry."

"It's okay. It's the truth. You were an orphan. It's my job to change that."

Emma and Mary Margaret had gathered with the group, telling them the good news, "The map is working. We know here Henry is."

Regina was immediately focused, "Where?"

Hook, who was presented the map began to analyse it, "Uh...We're here at the southern tip of the isle, in the middle of the Dark Jungle, and Pan's camp lies due north." he spoke, tracing the path with his pale hook.

"That's where he's keeping Henry." Emma notes.

"What are we waiting for?" Regina asks with a new spark of hope fanned in her belly, this was what they had been waiting for.

Hook considered it, "Well, the terrain's not easy. There will undoubtedly be some nasty impediments along the way."

"We're aware of the risks." Mary Margaret affirms, steadily.

David rejoined, "Nevertheless, we should prepare. We only made it out of our last encounter because Pan let us. We need a new plan."

"Agreed. It's time we stop playing his game and he starts playing ours." Emma resolved.

"And if I disagree?" Regina queries to her side.

"Go ahead, but I think you know our best chance is together."

"You better be right."

There was an undercurrent of swagger as Hook began to talk, "Excellent show of patience, luv. And that's what defeats a nasty little boy."

* * *

Emma had crouched near a bush, mindlessly picking berries until Pan caught her by surprise, "Don't eat the blue ones." he warns, "Congratulations. You did it...orphan. You don't mind if I call you a lost girl, do you?"

Emma tried to avoid him, "Call me what you like. It won't stop me from finding my family."

Peter chuckled from behind her, "Oh, I'm counting on that. There's a reason I tested you."

"Really?"

Pan tormented her further, "You haven't forgiven your parents for abandoning you. Don't deny it. You haven't. That's good. Really good." the boy smiles, an evil glint in his green eyes, "'Cause when you find Henry, you'll understand him."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"He hasn't forgiven you either." he explains, "By the time you get to him, he'll never want to leave this island."

"We'll see."

"You think you're doing the right thing, by taking Henry and Rose back to your one-pony town? I mean, I doubt it's even a healthy environment for the lad, tsk, tsk, tsk. All that dysfunction, Emma. Do you honestly think it's good for him to suffer something so broken, so damaged? Look how you turned up." His words cut at her like knives, it locked her bones and forced her to bleed, he lip quivered. Pan's words were seductive, he was worming his way into her head. "Henry can have a family here, a place where he'll be with boys his own age, and he'll have fun always. Rose will be here to care for him, to love him, he doesn't need Storybrooke. Neverland doesn't have to deal with the reality of the adult world; your world changes people, poisons them, you know how horrible it really is, you've seen it. But here, he'll be young always, he'll be the Henry you know now for all of time."

Peter had acted so convincingly, his childlike, elfin features worked to distract from the evil she knew lived within him. It was a good act, and if Emma were not so driven to find her son, maybe she would have succumbed. But she was stronger than he thought.

A bubble of mirthless laughter escaped the blonde, "You make me want to believe." she said, "You really do. Except I know what you do to the boys who live on this island, you bend them until they break, you promise them adventure and family, but you would never be able to give them what they need. You won't be able to give them the love of their parents, you're a kid yourself, how would you understand? You wouldn't know the first thing about loving a son or a daughter." She felt herself driving him back, the slow gain of the upper-hand. She then drew the dagger home, "And if you really were as powerful as you say, then you wouldn't need Henry at all. But there's more isn't there? Because you've mentioned Rose one too many times today, you used her against me, against Regina, against Mary Margaret, even Hook. I think you care about her more than you'd want anyone to know. But the question is, how much does she really mean to you? Or better yet, how much do you mean to her, because Killian told me something...Rose was on this island before, but she ran away from you. And if I think I'm right in my assumption, I think you love her and you're afraid of her, afraid that she won't be the same as you remembered, that maybe...she stopped loving you."

Emma dismissed him, she picks up her basket and proceeds to leave the way she came.

She could tell she stirred something in him. Peter Pan was breathing heavily, his eyes glittered with rage, though it scared her how much he kept it so controlled when all he probably wanted to do is to turn her to dust. But Pan wasn't done with her yet, he kept himself rooted on the spot, "Fine. If that's how you want to play, so be it. As for you, Emma...when we're finished, you won't just feel like an orphan. You'll be one."

* * *

" ** _Such lonely, lost things you find on your way. It would be_** easier, ** _if you were the only one lost. But lost children always find each other, in the dark, in the cold. It is as though they are magnetized and can only attract their like.."_**

 ** _― Catherynne M. Valente, The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making_**

* * *

 **A/N** :Hey guys! Guess who's back?!

Hannah here! Sorry it's been forever, but I've just gone through my exams and boy they have left me drained with absolutely not time for writing. In any case, they're over, and I should be beginning to write again, it may take some time to post more chapters since I have no other pre-written ones yet so you will have to bear with me as I endeavour to get through it.

Dun dun dun! WHAAAAT, Rose Red is Tiger Lily? Why, yes, dear reader, she is. So we're really getting to know a lot about the relationships of our characters and I think that's really one of the charms of OUAT. More than the plot, it's really awesome to be able to contribute to such character driven stories. I want you guys to know that I have such big plans for Rose/Lily and more than just Neverland, her adventures will span across different places, stories and points in time (if I get to writing it). It's so cool to play around in this sandbox, OUAT really has so much possibilities. I think this season in Neverland is really the fleshing out of her back story so stay tuned!

I hope you guys love Peter and Lily as much as I do. I know I've always loved their pairing more than Peter and Wendy, but that's just a different thread of conversation already. I've finished the novel 'Tiger Lily' by Jodi Lynn Anderson and it's just so beautiful, I definitely recommend it. I finished it in a night, it was that good.

I haven't given up yet! As always, please review, the encouragement and insight really means a lot. PM me if you want to talk abut everything and nothing at all. :) Any questions? Comments? Hearing from you really makes my day!

I do not own any characters you might recognise, they are the property of Disney. I do own my OC (Rose/Tiger Lily).

Many thanks! And happy fanfic hunting!

-HannahBananasxx


	5. Quite A Common Faerie: part I

Chapter Five - Quite A Common Faerie

* * *

"All the world is made of faith, and trust, and pixie dust."

― J.M. Barrie, Peter Pan

* * *

 ** _Neverland, then._**

 _His grip on her hand was tight and warm, she couldn't tell whether it was her palm which was sweaty or his. "Where are you bringing me, Peter?" Tiger Lily asked._

 _The boy was pulling her roughly this way and that; and though she affirmed that she would have been able to keep up with him without his guidance, it did not change the fact that he had not let go of her. "You'll see, come on, Tiger."_

 _When they reach their destination, she is nothing but stunned. Trees grew in the dense thicket, copses littered about and all around them: tiny glowing lights scattered here and there. She almost mistook them for fireflies, but these creatures were altogether not so common. "Faeries." she breathed._

 _"Shhhh." urged Peter with a finger to his lips, "Not so loud, you'll wake them."_

 _"Where are we?"_

 _"Pixie Grove."_

 _Peter led her closer to the hollowed out trees that the faeries had made their home; they lay almost squished together, almost in a small pile to keep themselves warm, dozing away lazily, morning, noon and night. Their bodies radiating a soft glow, with their dainty snores and strewn legs._

 _"I've never seen them with my own eyes before. How enchanting." Lily whispered with a smile. "Do they always sleep so?"_

 _"Yep," said Peter, popping the 'p'. "pixies need loads of rest, they create a lot of magic. Their bodies aren't used to it yet."_

 _"Pixies? I thought they were faeries?" Rose said, her face, along with Peter's were crowded closely as they spoke in hushed whispers; only the shimmer of the sleeping creatures lit their soft faces._

 _"Not yet, they start out as pixies and mature fully into faeries. Pixie Grove is where they're born, it's where a lot of the island's magic is born. See there?" the boy points to a sizeable ring of mushrooms not far from where they crouched, "faerie rings, they all over the grove and the faeries sprout up from the magic in the ground. Faeries are made of magic; their magic and the magic imbued from the ground seeps into the roots of trees, the trees bloom flowers and inside the buds are the pixie dust."_

 _"It all seems very complex," she teases, "I'm quite impressed you know so much."_

 _Peter just shrugs, "When pixies are fully grown they usually leave the island and bring magic elsewhere. But sometimes they stay, the faeries here raised me by themselves and took care of me. It's only fair that I took care of them."_

 _Lily nudged Peter with her shoulder, her skin brushing his pied cloak. "Did you sprout out from the ground too?"_

 _His green eyes were somber when he met her examining gaze, "Something like that." he said quite vaguely._

 _Lily flushed, she did not mean to offend. She turned her head forward, her eyes once again glued to the sleeping nest of winged creatures who did not yet stir at their intrusion, "Will you tell me about it?" she said, her voice small, muffled by the curtain of hair on her shoulder._

 _The boy was not normally the secretive type. Peter bit his lip and did not speak for some time, content to just watch the pixies in the grove next to the princess. He chewed on the nail of his thumb, the middle of his chest pressed against the right side of her shoulders._

 _It was odd how though there obviously still lay barriers between them, there was a familiarity that bound the two together. A recognition, like pulling like._

 _Tiger Lily had almost missed it when Peter Pan gave her his answer. "Someday."_

 _They stayed in the Pixie Grove until the snoring of the tiny pixies hummed the two youths into a peaceful sleep, tangled in each other's presence in more ways than one_.

* * *

 **Neverland, present day.**

Regina's shoes had been chafing her feet since they arrived at the infernal island a few days ago.

Irritated, she swats away a palm frond. "How much farther?"

Emma was looking down at the map before her, enchanted by Pan himself. "We should be getting closer," she told the mayor, "Pan's there. We're on a straight course…" The group, composing of

Regina, Emma, Mary Margaret, David and Killian pauses as Emma inspects the frowns at the piece of parchment, confusion clouding her features, the 'X' marking Pan's camp on the map had suddenly moved to the other tip of the island. "Son of a bitch! How is it now behind us?"

"How can that be?" Mary Margaret questions. "The map's wrong?"

"Or," Regina begins, "You got us lost."

Hook raises a lamp to the map, eyeing it warily. "No, she didn't." He concluded, "It's the camp. Pan's moving it."

David sighed tiredly, the gash in his sighed frustrating him, "He's playing tricks on us."

"If Pan's camp keeps moving, how are we gonna find Henry and Rose?" Emma frowned, not for the last time that day.

* * *

 **Neverland, the Lost Boy's Camp.**

Rose Mills had emerged from the treehouse looking bedraggled and pale. She slunk quietly down the ladder and walked to where a familiar figure huddled under a large tree. The figure of the had crumpled his body into itself, making him as small as possible, his arms tucked underneath his chin, his discarded coat and scarf, now used as a makeshift pillow.

"Henry." A voice had said from behind the short boy. It was almost comical the way his head whipped up so fast at the mention of his name. His face broke into a relieved expression, his body making a mad scramble as he ran to meet her.

He crashed to where Rose stood, in battered school shoes and a dirty blazer. Henry Mills hugged his aunt with all his might. It lasted for about a minute, not caring for the other boys who were now spectating at all other areas of the camp. They had given them a wide berth, knowing not to mess with Pan's captives, still, it did not prevent them from looking with suspicious eyes cast under dark hoods. Their garments had been fashioned in a way that they all seemed one and the same, menacing, wayward and scruffy.

"Rose!" he cried, "You're okay!" Henry looked worse for wear, his cheeks ruddy, and his hair tufted.

She stroked his head kindly, placing his head on her collarbone, "Yeah Henry, I'm okay."

Henry was quiet for a moment, "...They got me. You told me to run, but Pan tricked me. I'm sorry."

"Hey, we're together now. I'm sorry that I made that decision to separate, I thought it was the right one, but I promise not to leave you again." She said softly.

"They said you got caught…I-I didn't know what they would have done to you. What he would have done." He said, burying his face into her shoulder. "I was scared."

"Nothing happened. I'm okay, really." Rose said, offering him a small smile.

He looked at her carefully, the injury on her ankle had been healed. "Your sprain, it's gone!" he said, meeting her eyes. "Did he do that?"

Her eyes hardened, "Yes."

"Why?"

It was then that the most famous of Lost Boys broke his silence, stalking out from the greenery where he had studied their exchange curiously. "Only the best treatment for a princess, laddie." stated the infamous Peter Pan. He cast a pointed glance at their red-headed companion who became stony at once. The interaction was missed by most, though fleeting, it had sent a clear warning to the girl: 'We play by my rules.'

Without warning, Peter Pan had chucked something in Henry's direction, it landed at his feet where the young boy stared at it dispassionately. On the ground lay a single, red apple; bruised now and covered in the dirt of the forest floor. "I don't like apples."

"Who doesn't like apples?" said Pan advancing, he had in his left hand a weighty crossbow.

At his proximity, the princess takes a reflexive step back, her hand pulling at the sleeve of Henry's shirt. "It's a family thing." Henry explains but does not elaborate, he feels Rose's grip getting tighter. She wants to pull him away.

Pan chuckles humorlessly, "Well don't worry, they're not for eating. It's for a kind of game. A really fun game. I call it 'target practice'." with no hesitation whatsoever, Rose immediately puts herself in front of Henry, her body creating a barrier between him and Pan; the crossbow, which Pan had raised and was initially pointed at Henry, is now aimed at the girl's chest.

She breathes heavily through her nostrils, an unyielding look on her face, "No." she said with finality.

* * *

 **Elsewhere** **, Neverland.**

"So this whole trek has been for nothing. I told you walking was idiotic." Regina commented harshly. "If I could just use some magic, we can materialize in the camp and grab them."

"We don't know where the camp is. Have you been listening?" interrupted Mary Margaret.

"Pan will have shields against magic. I fear such an attempt would end in your death, and more importantly, mine. Which is why we're walking." Killian intervenes.

"This is stupid," Regina says.

"Pan and his right-hand boy made it perfectly clear the last time that if we will not abide by their rules, there would be dire consequences."

"So we're just gonna be threatened by tweens, is that it? A warning is going to stop us."

"Yes! If you truly value the lives of your son and whatever it is Rose means to you, then yes, there's no other choice."

Regina sighs, as much as she hates to admit it, Killian Jones has been their strongest ally in the jungle and has kept them alive through the dangers of Neverland, "What's your idea then? How are we going to find the camp?"

Killian was lost in thought for a second, a half-baked scheme forming in his mind, his dark eyes shifted left to right, "By using someone he trusts."

"Who? Because I guess he certainly doesn't trust you." David quips.

"A faerie who lived here while I was about. She might still be on the island. She'd be an inside source. Knows all about the camp, can get us in...She might even have some pixie dust left, perhaps we could fly in."

"You mean faerie dust." Emma provides.

David interjects, "No, pixie dust. It's stronger. Like nuclear faerie dust."

Emma's brow furrows, "Wait, a faerie...Tinker Bell?"

"Oh, you know her?" Hook says, surprised.

Emma had an incredulous look, "Every kid in the world knows her."

"It's a bad idea." pipes Regina. "Mark my words, this Tinker Bell is not going to save us."

* * *

 _ **Neverland, then.**_

 _During her many years in Neverland, Tiger Lily had visited the Pixie Grove more times than she could count. There was something she liked about watching the sleeping pixies as they burrowed in their nests. It was one of the few places that always remained calm on the island, where the girl could silently watch and seek out a little bit of quiet and isolation from the growing rowdiness of the lost boys._

 _Peter was off doing something or other, possibly taking their ever-growing troupe for a hunt; and though she would normally join in the wild chase, there were occasions where she just wanted some time to herself. Besides, she trusted Felix in reigning Peter's more destructive streaks (when she wasn't around). It was hard being the only lost girl on an island of boys. The only other females were the pixies who could barely make a sound and the mermaids who were half-feral anyway so the princess was not at all spoiled for choice company. Lily had been carving away at a rough piece of stone when a spout of bright light cropped up from a circle of fungi by her feet._

 _It was there where a new faerie was born, well - pixie, technically. The pixie was tiny for its size, it had bright blonde hair and woke with a large yawn, stretching its arms and rubbing at its eyes. The creature saw Tiger Lily at once and peered at her with an uncommon seriousness as if berating the girl for waking it up. "Oh hello, I've never seen you before." Tiger Lily greeted politely, despite the contemplative gaze of the pixie. It was one thing to leave manners unused now and again when the local denizens of the island are a contingent of unruly boys; it was another thing entirely to forget them._

 _The pixie had tried to march up to the girl who was immeasurably larger than itself; but the pixie's legs had faltered, it skittered, knees wobbly; Lily had caught it before it fell. Cradled in her hand, the pixie knelt somberly, pushing its blonde hair out of its eyes. When the pixie looked once again at the face of the princess, it began to blush furiously, embarrassment tinging her skin scarlet._

 _Upon closer inspection, Lily immediately saw what was wrong, one of the faerie's translucent wings were bent askew. It had thrown the little thing out of balance."Hold still," Lily advised, before gingerly trying to straighten the folded wing. The pixie had tried to protest at the intrusion, managing a few angry squeaks. Lily had chided it promptly, "Oh hush, it doesn't hurt at all. There, finished!"_

 _The pixie slowly tested out its wing, wiggling its shoulders before trying to take flight. It had managed to hover a little ways above the girl's palm before it landed on its butt with another blush._

 _"It's alright, take your time, you only just woke up after all. We'll soon have you in flying shape!" muttered the princess optimistically._

 _Unconvinced, the pixie had tilted its head to the side as if to say: 'Really?'_

 _"Quite!" Lily insists, patting its head with a gentle finger. The pixie was quickly appeased, its arms wrapping around her thumb in a happy hug, almost purring in contentment. "You're a funny bug, aren't you? Mischievous."_

 _The pixie gave a noncommittal shrug of its shoulders. Presumably noting: 'I wouldn't know who I'm supposed to be just yet.'_

 _"Well, you're very pretty," Lily spoke. The creature grew a bashful pink as it batted its eyelashes. "I have an inkling that you won't be like the others…"_

 _The pixie raised its brows, 'Oh?'_

 _"Yes, for we will be fast friends. Would you like to be?" she offered._

 _The pixie glanced up shyly and nodded its head in a vigorous affirmative; the noises she made like a tinkling, a peal of miniature bells._

 _The princess chuckled, her teeth showing. "Then if we are to be friends, I must call you by name."_

 _Her pixie pursed her lips and looked around, coming up empty._

 _"Shall I give you one then?" the girl asked, at that, the pixie nodded once more, with confidence. "Let's see...I think I shall call you...Poppy?"_

 _Her pixie was displeased, a sour look colouring her features._

 _"Alright, so not that. How about...Nettle?"_

 _At this proposal, her pixie had stuck her tongue out in disapproval._

 _"Not Nettle either huh...Robin? ...Tawny? ...Spindleweed? Blue Grass...No?" Her pixie seemed more and more unhappy at each rejected turn. The girl sighs, "This is harder than I thought." Her pixie seemed to agree. "Let me think...think, think, think."_

 _The girl had reclined on an upended tree, one hand to her chin, the other holding her bug aloft. "Think, think...How about ...Tink! For Tinker Bell?" Elated, the pixie jumped up and down, its tiny hands clapping. Pleased to finally have a proper name. "You like it, do you really? So then, Tinker Bell, how about we introduce you to Peter and the boys? We'll show you some real fun!"_

* * *

 **Neverland, the Lost Boys' Camp.**

"No?" Pan inquired, he didn't know whether to be thoroughly amused by the girl's fire or infuriated by her gall to ruin their fun. In any case, he especially hated how protective the girl was over Henry.

"Rose," Henry said with frightened eyes.

Rose tilted her chin higher, she looked regal. "You heard me." she pushed away the crossbow pointed at her heart, "He will not be part of your games, Pan."

" _He_?" Pan asked snidely. "Don't you mean, _'We will not be part of your games'_?"

"We both know it's too late for me."

" _'Too late'_ ," Peter sniffed, mulling it over. "Now that sounds about right." With a wicked grin, Pan had her surrounded by the boys, "Tie her up and shut her up. The game continues." There was a spiteful look which crossed in his eyes.

Entirely too quick, Rose was bound to a nearby tree, a dirty handkerchief pushed between her teeth in an uncomfortable gag; her yelps muffled. "Hel-!"

Henry tried to get to her, only to be pushed to the ground by Felix with an angry "Oof".

Pan meanwhile was dipping a long arrow in a small vial, his movements well practiced. Henry collected himself from the ground. "What's that?"

"Dreamshade. A nasty poison." The Head Lost Boy seemed to delight in giving him this message. "We have a story here about a man who once shot an apple off his son's head with an arrow." He loads the crossbow quickly, the dark liquid dripping off the arrowhead. "Let's find out if this is possible."

Henry, cautious now, spoke, "If you're shooting at the apple what's the poison for?"

Peter Pan looks down the barrel of the crossbow playfully, in his peripheral, he finds Rose Red glaring daggers at him, squirming in the binds. He sends her a toothy smile. "Motivation not to miss. Felix," Pan calls from over his shoulder, "The apple?"

"Is..is Felix good? Is his aim good?" The boy in question picked the apple off the ground and started to place it on his head.

"No, not yours, Felix." Pan clarified, then nodding in Rose's direction, "Hers." Felix hesitated for a second but did as he was told with a wry smile. "Felix's skill doesn't matter. You're the one doing the shooting."

The large wooden crossbow was placed in Henry's hand, his arms sagged with the weight. He fidgeted on the spot, shaking his head, "I-I don't wanna shoot." Pan dragged him to face Rose who was breathing quickly just a few feet ahead.

The girl glowered at Pan, her cheeks colouring. His green eyes met hers coldly, his nostrils flared. 'You asked for this,' he thought, labouring to suppress the bubble of trepidation in his belly. The Lost Boys began to chant louder and faster. "Shoot. Shoot. Shoot."

Peter Pan tried to mollify him, his eyes almost friendly, "You won't hit her. Trust yourself. Go on. It's exhilarating."

"Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!" The boys didn't stop their chanting, in fact, appearing more savage for the spilling of blood. No one had noticed how Felix was oddly mute, his scar itching.

They all tense when Henry finally takes his aim at the apple balanced precariously on the girl's head. Her body is rigid, she can't bear to move, she stares at Pan resolutely. The boys have grown silent, Pan's eyes glued to the transpiring events. The moment arrives when Henry takes his shot, but the course of his target has changed, he fires it at Peter Pan.

There is a hitch of breath as the arrow flies, but it does not strike him; miraculously, Pan catches the weapon mid-air, inches off his chest. Both Henry and Rose were dejected at the missed opportunity, and yet, strangely relieved. For Henry, it was likely due to the confronting nature of his actions that was supremely out of character for him. In Rose's case, it was a definite strike against the unresolved feelings she had for the 'bloody demon' (as Hook called him).

Peter Pan, to his credit, was only a little out of breath. He quickly discarded the arrow. "Told you it was exhilarating." He said with a smirk, taking the crossbow from Henry's numb hands. "Come on, I have something to show you." and he pulled the Truest Believer away.

* * *

"He does something to me, that boy. Every time. It's his only detriment. He steps on my heart. He makes me cry."

― Markus Zusak, The Book Thief

* * *

A/N: So sorry I'm doing this again, but the chapters keep ending up really long and I'm trying to at least keep it manageable and space out these little babies.

'Quite a Common Faerie' has been fully written already so I'm just gonna drag out my next update until I catch up with my other works. Dark Matter needs an update soon and I am procrastinating. Original storylines are kinda hard. Hope y'all are still reading my rambles.

To my reviewers:

Lizzy B: I'm just going to assume you are one of the Bennet sisters and live in this fantasy of mine. So glad you enjoy the story. This just goes to show that every little review counts. It's what keeps me up until 2 in the morning just writing.

As always, please review, the encouragement and insight really means a lot. PM me if you want to talk about everything and nothing at all. :) Any questions? Comments? Hearing from you really makes my day!

I do not own any characters you might recognise, they are the property of Disney. I do own my OC (Rose/Tiger Lily).

Many thanks! And happy fanfic hunting!

-HannahBananasxx


	6. Quite A Common Faerie: part II

**Chapter Six - Quite A Common Faerie pt. II**

* * *

 ** _"Come away, O human child!_**

 ** _To the waters and the wild_**

 ** _With a faery, hand in hand,_**

 ** _For the world's more full of weeping than you can understand."_**

 ** _― W.B. Yeats, The Collected Poems of W.B. Yeats_**

* * *

 ** _Neverland, then._**

 _Tinker Bell's fondest days had been those spent with Peter and Lily. Her tiny heart swelled whenever she thought of them. They had been her world, her friends._

 _When Tiger Lily had presented her to the Lost Boys, they had all been very excited to meet her. But they were too rough, they prodded and yanked and were not careful. Most had never held a pixie before and she was frequently jostled. She decided she liked the girl better than the boys. They weren't all bad, she thought, some were sweet and gathered for her leaves and soft barks and things for her to make a nest in; in those cases, she did not have a had time to wonder how Lily could afford to tolerate the boys for they had their own fair share of shining moments._

 _Mostly, Tink was elated to have met Peter. He had been surprisingly gentle with her, much like Lily had. He had a charm to him, it made you forgive and forget his shortcomings- his brashness, his forgetfulness, his single-mindedness. For Peter could be sweet and attentive when he wanted to be; she'd seen it when he pulled the covers to Lily's chin while she slept, when he taught the boys how to swim or when he had brought Tink the tiny blue eggshell for a hat. She liked that. It was one of her favourite pieces. He was a different breed of boy. The type that caught you off-guard with his softness._

 _Some days seemed to blur together, not because they were utterly forgettable, but because they were so good you couldn't tell them apart and you're left with only a vague feeling and a clutching at the breast. Then there were those days, vivid, burning into memory. She remembers the conversation, it was by the outlook of Mermaid Lagoon._

 _Peter Pan was playing his pipes with eyes closed and though Tinker Bell did not hear it, it was beautiful nonetheless. Tiger Lily lay flat on her belly, comfortable as she watched the mermaids sing one song after another in the lagoon below, the music from the pipes making her head light._

 _Tinker Bell was still a pixie, so she could not yet form her words, but she was grown enough to fly on her own and keep pace with the others. She had one leg close to her chest and left the other hanging as she perched on Peter's shoulder. Tiger Lily sighed, finished with watching the spectacle and made her way to sit next to the boy as they propped on a boulder. The boy cracked one eye open, watching Lily, "Done already? What are you thinking about?"_

 _Lily turned her head skywards, the sun shining down. She didn't bother looking at him, "I don't know," she said shrugging. "Being here feels right," Peter had stopped playing, but the mermaids still carried on with their melody._

 _"Is that a question?"_

 _"Did it sound like it?"_

 _"A little."_

 _"Then, being here with you feels right." She repeats more firmly. Peter laughs, adjusting his legs. He moves a little too much and Tinker Bell loses her balance; she makes a disgruntled squeaking noise and jerks his ear twice._

 _"Ow, sorry Tink." he apologises, stroking her blonde hair with a fingertip. The pixie is placated and sits back down, her mood cooling and she leans leisurely on the boy. The girl watches them._

 _"You cheer her up so quickly," Lily mentions, her knees tucked under her chin, "I think she prefers you over me sometimes."_

 _"S'not hard," Peter says, smiling down at the pixie._

 _Lily continues to tease him, her amber eyes narrowing, "You just have a way with them?"_

 _"Your words, princess," he replied, noting her tone._

 _Lily straightens, "I think she has a crush." the girl announces knowingly._

 _The pixie on his shoulder balks, "A what?"_

 _"I mean to say, she's taken a severe liking to you." the princess clarifies._

 _"So you say." he chides, toying with the knotted string that held his pan pipes together._

 _"So I know." she levels him with her eyes, the siren song swirling about them._

 _"How would you know," In an unexpected turn of events, the girl is caught, and is frozen where she was, "what do you know about it?" Beside him, Tinker Bell cocks her head, altogether interested in the topic._

 _Lily's jaw drops. She doesn't meet his eyes, she couldn't, it was too much; they slid downward, looking for an escape. "I told you. It...feels right," For two people constantly surrounded by others, they could be very lonely. "Never mind, forget I said anything." she flounders._

 _"I feel something." Peter stated, the easy mood was all but gone, "Like faeries' wings in my gut. Light. Heavy. Hot at the same time. It's different with you. I think it's grown worse." It brewed like a hurricane and swarmed him. He is too quick, "Is this love?"_

 _The girl looks at him, bewildered. "I don't know. Maybe. Is it?"_

 _"I was asking you." they laugh, a brief reprieve. "I'm confused." the boy shakes his head._

 _Tiger Lily sighs minutely, "I think it's meant to be that way." Tink looks from Lily to Peter, silently; she had decided that this interaction had been out of the norm and should be one to pay attention to._

 _"What else?" The pan pipes lay abandoned by his feet._

 _"Apart from the things I've read, I wouldn't know." The girl racks her brain and shrugs._

 _Her answer gave nothing to stop Peter's line of questioning, "What did they say?"_

 _"Well, for one, do you feel like going on your knees and swearing to me, professing you'd die for my sake?" her mouth pursed, she felt very unsettled._

 _Peter looked terrified, his eyes bulging, "Er, no?"_

 _Lily shrugged, scratching her head. "There's always marriage and children."_

 _"But children can't have children." Peter was more and more off-track, his thoughts muddling. He was very serious, Tink didn't know what to make of it. She had never seen Peter like this before._

 _"Does that mean love is for old people?"_

 _"I hope not." she says wistfully, "But there are different kinds of love,"_

 _The frustration was clear on his expression, his body too, moved somewhat erratically, he shifted closer, "How do you know what this is?" he wet his lips, "Have others felt like this before... Is this new or special?"_

 _Lily offered quietly, "Is it real?"_

 _"More than anything," he admitted. The Lost Boy's face was open and insecure, faltering and exposed._

 _"It's a shot." the Lost Girl finished._

 _"At what?" The boy perked up._

 _"Happiness. That's love I think. It's what it is." she nodded, "More than anxiousness or sad poetry, bawdy declarations or infinite longing."_

 _"I am happy. The happiest." he maintained._

 _"You've always been happy. You can't help it." she insists, "How do you know it's a different kind of happy, with me?"_

 _"But it is. It's real, Tiger Lily, I feel it." his eyes swam with mixed emotions, but he held steady as an unwavering rock._

 _She thinks that the feeling she has for him now had stayed the same for a very long time. Peter was unsure until she clutched at his hand, "Me too."_

 _Tinker Bell became perplexed. She loved Peter and Lily. But she was not in love with them. At least she didn't believe so. Still, it made her sizzle with jealousy. Tink almost felt the steam coming out of her ears. It had been said before that faeries' hearts (this included pixies) were not elastic, that they were less evolved and could hold very little at a time. So when she felt something, she felt it absolutely. She was jealous of Tiger Lily, because she could feel all those things that Tink could not; because of the way she had Peter and the way they could be in love with each other._

 _Tinker Bell tried to beat at Peter's chest, but it only made him knock her away until she fell to the earth. They hadn't even noticed that it was a bit of a hard fall. So she watched; helplessly, as bit by bit, their faces closed in with one another's and their lips hesitantly connected. Clumsy, awkward. A first love. Tink peered up from the jagged rock, she used it to support her weight as she sank to her feet, her wings folding behind her._

 _Change had come. It was just one of those things. One that you could understand and yet not understand synchronously. One of those things that could not be undone once it had happened, but resolve only to stand proudly, or consequently fall apart._

* * *

 **Elsewhere, Neverland, present day.**

She had left Neverland a very long time ago when she believed that the Faerie Order of the Enchanted Forest was able to give her guidance when he had 'lost her way'. Tink barely remembers all the rules and regulations Blue had set (there were just so many), she didn't retain the information from any of her myriad of lectures or her hours of 're-education'. It was funny, the way it turned out, that the lesson she learned from Regina was the most impactful, the one she never did forget.

The ex-faerie finally had Regina where she wanted her and she was going to get her revenge for costing Tink her wings. It was widely understood that a set of wings were a faerie's crowning glory, their most prized possession; many faeries had prided themselves on their wings, their size and shape and colour. She knew of some who had meticulously ground pearls and applied them to their wings daily to achieve a rainbow-like sheen, others still, groomed themselves to no end or stuck semi-precious stones so that they would dazzle as they flew by. There were competitions and parades dedicated to them. Tink had thought that though hers were not the biggest or the flashiest, hers were something to be proud of; they were a part of who she was. Without them, she had nothing. She lived those past few decades miserable and outcast. And she owed it all to one person.

She had dreamed of that moment, of ending the vile woman. Yes, she was spiteful, but who wouldn't be? Now, she had Regina's heart in her hand; quite literally, she was at her mercy. Yet why couldn't she finish it? It was still beating in her hand, and she gave it yet another painful squeeze. Though she could not exert the force to pulverize the ugly thing. Why? She knew what she had to do, it was a simple action. A reflex, of all things. Still…

Tink wanted answers. "Do you know what you cost me?"

Regina sees the involuntary shrug, the rolling of the shoulders… at least the brunette had the decency to gasp in horror, "Your wings."

"Why?" Tinker Bell demands.

"Why what? Why did I hand over my heart?"

"No! Why did you lie?" This was her chance, to finally know the truth, Regina would be compelled to answer honestly this time. "Because I've been over it a million times and that spell worked!" She saw Regina's face crestfallen, her posture slumped. "You never went in! It's the only explanation. Why couldn't you just go through that door and meet your soulmate? Was being happy such a terrible fate?" She knew true love existed; she had seen it before. She had used pixie dust before for the same purpose and it worked. It confirmed everything and it gave her hope and the will to move on and the want to make others just as happy. It was what she wanted for Regina from the very beginning.

Regina caves, "Yes. Yes, it was." It struck Tink to silence, "You're right, I never went in. I was afraid." It was there that the Evil Queen breaks as easy as a piece of brittle glass. She was transparent and defenceless. "I didn't—You said I can let go of the anger that was weighing me down and suddenly it felt like—without it...I would just float away. That anger was all I had. What would I be without it?"

"Happy." Tink asserts. She's heard the words before.

Regina was shaking her head, "Weak."

Tinker Bell confronted, her she was so tired of losing, "And look, what good it did you. The 'strength' you gained." she wielded the pulsating organ, "Because I'm holding your heart in my hand and I'm not hearing one reason not to squeeze it into ash."

It was surprising how the ruthless the blonde could be when provoked. "Alright, you want a reason? Here you go. You think I was afraid? You think I did the wrong thing? Well, faerie, right now you're making the same choice. I picked revenge over hope and you're holding the result." She sees Tink waver and forces her to take a closer look at the nearly black heart. "A small, hard, dark heart. If you make the same choice I did, then what you're looking at is your own future." Tink wrenched her hand away, "I'm not gonna tell you what to do. The choice is yours. Kill me or act like the faerie you are." It was a distressing image. She wonders if she should add a 'Behold! The eighth wonder of the world, the dark heart of the Evil Queen!'

Tinker Bell didn't back down, "You said I was a terrible faerie."

"Well then, prove me wrong. Pick hope over anger, choose love and help me get my son back."

That caught the faerie's attention. "You love your son?"

Regina actually broke into a smile, "Very much. With Henry, I've finally got something right. Don't you wanna be able to say the same thing?"

Tinker Bell looked at her with doubt, "It's too late for me." she says with a shake of her messy head.

"Only if you kill me."

Something changes in Tink, "I won't kill you. But I won't help you either…" there is a pregnant pause, somehow, Regina knows she won't like the next words coming out of Tinker Bell, "Besides, it's probably too late. He's been with him too long." With that finality, she hands Regina back her heart and walks away. Ironically, she tells herself that she is being the bigger person.

* * *

 _Then._

 _It had been too good to be true. Before she knew it, Tinker Bell's time in Neverland came to an end. Gone were the days of sleeping in Tiger Lily's hair, or playing hide-and-go-seek with the boys or dancing with Peter Pan._

 _The end came soon after that day. After the arrival of that one dreadful day in the Dark Hollow. To be honest, Tinker Bell had been dozing again in the nest she built for herself in the treehouse, waiting for Lily and the boys to come back from their new adventure. She was awakened by a ruckus outside, the boys were hollering and asking question after question which she could not decipher, her nap had left her dazed. But the faerie had quickly sobered when she heard a shrill cry of her name, "Tink! Tink! Help us please!" it was Tiger Lily, sounding wretched and raw._

 _The disaster had taken them away for three days; Lily was entirely panicked, Felix was shaken, there was crying, but that was predicted. She did too. Of course, she led them to the elder faeries in the grove, of course, copious amounts of magic was involved. When didn't it? Moreover, the situation was wholly dire, what would they have her do, just let someone she loved die? The elders were being too hypocritical and narrow-minded as ever._

 _There was no other alternative. Was it a little risque? Perhaps. Forbidden? Maybe. But Lily had come into it knowing full well the consequences, the sacrifice. She owned it. She saved him. Or at least they thought. And the elders presided over it anyway._

 _It was not without repercussion. The older faeries of Neverland had disciplined her; told her that the time she had spent with the human children were not wise. That she should be with her own kind. That it was time to grow up, and the Lost Children of Neverland were just that, a lost cause of juveniles, they were not able to age and become a part of functioning society. They said that Peter and Lily were at the root of it all, that they were wayward, and used the magic of pixie dust irresponsibly with every whim. But magic came with a price, as most things did. Tinker Bell was shortly going to be sent away for a course correction._

 _She relented, what else could she do? Tinker Bell believed them when they said it would be for the greater good. Though she was wary, she trusted in their knowledge and mournfully obeyed their instructions._

 _Tinker Bell was packing her measly belongings when Tiger Lily had cornered her. "Going?" there was sadness in her, it did not leave her eyes._

 _She was glad she had the ability now to talk, a skill she lacked way back when. "The Elders gave me a very clear reprimanding. They're not happy. I presume bitterness comes with old age." Tink looked defeated._

 _Tiger Lily sat down in the middle of the room, her legs crossed. "There wasn't anything else we could have done. They know that right?"_

 _Tink forced herself to grow her human size and took the spot next to the redhead. The beads on the faerie's dress clattered together. "It doesn't change things from their point of view."_

 _Guilt crossed over Lily's fair features, "It was my fault." her eyes cast downward to her hands._

 _The faerie shook her head, "No, it wasn't."_

 _"He followed me, Tink." her voice cracked._

 _"That doesn't mean you can blame yourself. There's something I need to tell you." At her words, Tiger Lily met her eyes with intrigue._

 _"What is it?" her voice barely rose to a whisper._

 _"I never told you this, but...one night I used some pixie dust," Lily's eyes told her to go on, "You can use it to find your soulmate. True love."_

 _Confusion roiled within Tiger Lily, "What does this have to do with—"_

 _"After that day in Mermaid Lagoon, when Peter wanted to know what real love was—I had to know. So I used it on him...I think part of me hoped that it would point to me. But it didn't. It led to you." There was shame there in Tinker Bell's tone, Lily did not have the heart to be angry with her. "I'm sorry I never told, that I've been so quiet about it all this time. I can't imagine not knowing for sure after all this time."_

 _Lily shook her head sighing, "But I did know, not then, I don't think it was true love then. But it is now. I know when he looks at me. I know what I feel." her heart pounded in her chest, it hit her and hurt. The pain was proof enough. So was the happiness._

 _"See? He did it— he followed because he loved you. He did it for you as much as he did it for him. That act, you could say he did as service to himself, a life without the one you love is not to live at all." Tinker Bell walked over to where Tiger Lily stood, "A genuine act of true love is beyond a single person because it touches others." With her hand, Tinker Bell drew Lily's face to meet hers, she smiled brightly, with love. "That's why you did what you did, and that's why you have to stay now, while I have to go."_

 _Though she had been jealous in the past, Tinker Bell was never more happy for the lost girl. Deep in her heart, she knew they belonged together. Despite her denial, despite the challenges that came their way, it was always going to be Peter and Lily._

 _Lily nodded in a solemn fashion, even teary-eyed she was refined. The perks of a princess. "You will be coming back, won't you?"_

 _"You can't keep me from coming back." she smiled, knowing the truth of her words. There was something about Neverland that entreats return._

 _And when her goodbyes were said and done, she departed, like a small retreating star into the night sky_.

* * *

 **Neverland, the Lost Boys' Camp.**

"I don't belong here." Henry tells Pan ardently.

Pan rolls his eyes, "You know, she said the same thing once." he said nodding to Rose who was being untied by Felix. It looks as if she were trying to set Pan on fire with her scowl. "But, she assimilated, gone native, so to speak. You do belong, Henry. We've been waiting for you a very long time. Long before you were even born."

Pan spoke so easily, you could never know what was the truth and what was fiction. "I don't believe that," Henry says.

"You should." Pan says, "This place runs on imagination. On Belief. But your world stopped believing. Magic is dying and you, Henry, need to save it."

Henry had no delusions about what was wrong in his world. The grown-ups insisted all the time that they were right, that they knew better. But it was far from the real thing. "In my world, you mean?"

Peter Pan shook his head, "In every world. You need to bring it back. That's your destiny. To return the magic. To be 'The Savior'."

"That's my mom. Emma is The Savior. Not me."

The older boy scoffs, "So she broke some curse, anyone can break the curse if they knew how. Someone told me that Emma took quite a while to do it too." When Henry looks at him questioningly, Pan knew the bait was set, "Oh, I know more than you think. But what if breaking the curse wasn't the thing that made her the savior, what if having you was. Think about it." he suggests, "You both descend from the greatest of light and of dark. You think it's a coincidence that the spawn of the Dark One met your mother? You were created for a reason and I can help you find it." Pan assured.

Henry thought he was crazy, he certainly sounded like it, "So you're thinking I'm supposed to save magic."

"I don't think. I believe," he says with determination. "Remember, I said I've something to show you?" he pulls something out from his pocket, it was a small scroll, one which he hands Henry. "Here. I had this for a very long time. Long before you were even thought about. Take a look and you'll know why I'm so sure you're the hero magic has been waiting for."

Henry takes the scroll. He doesn't even bother to open it, he was ready to make his point as he drops it to the ground. "I don't believe you."

It didn't matter what Henry did, Pan was sure he had him already. "You remind me of your father." he throws back, quirking his brow and leaving. The seed of doubt and curiosity was already planted inside Henry's mind.

* * *

 **Elsewhere.**

Tinker Bell hated being caged. Typical she would be caught by the irreproachable rescue party. "But you know where Pan is?"

Tinker Bell let the question hang in the air for a moment, "Sure." she shrugs, "But it won't do you a bit of good."

"Let us be the judge of that." Mary Margaret was stubborn, it ran in the family. They were so close now to reuniting her loved ones. "Does he trust you?"

"Can you get us inside his compound?" Emma added.

Tinker Bell crosses her arms, "Maybe. Why should I help you?"

"Because I believe in you." the woman in white put it simply. It was a little weird.

Emma tried to assuage her worry, "Just get us inside. We'll take care of things from there."

Tinker Bell remained skeptical, "And what's in it for me? Other than a death sentence from Pan when you're gone with your boy."

"You can come with us." they provided.

Mary Margaret smiled at her daughter proudly, "That's right. A home. That is what you want, isn't it?"

Tink wishes it were that simple. Later, when they were all resting in camp, Tinker Bell pulls away to an old compatriot for an overdue chat. Hook was startled initially but was not surprised to find her wanting to talk. "Well, well, milady. Long time, yes?"

"Cut the shit, Killian," she says sharply, rolling her eyes. "Tell me, can I trust these people?"

Killian nods quickly, "They're good people. Well, most of them." Hook says, subtly motioning to Regina. Tink laughs bitterly in agreement. "I've been with them for some time now, and they just want their family back."

Tinker Bell takes a moment to asses him, she had to make sure he was telling the truth, like Killian, there had been people to coming to Neverland for ultimately selfish purposes, wanting to squander and exploit her home for all it was worth. But there was something different in Killian that made her take a second glance, no more was the pirate with the one track mind for revenge. She found this Killian Jones was changed, a deeper emotion had replaced the hate which was once in his eyes. Finally, she nods and attempts to move on to another topic, "There's something else." notes Tink.

"And what's that?" asks the captain.

Tink licks her lips and glances around her, almost paranoid. "There are rumours that Pan's second lieutenant is back-"

"Rufio?" Killian's eyes were large.

"No, _her_." Tinker Bell says pointedly, their voices whispered, "Actually the very same day Henry was found on the island."

Hook took a while to respond. "Oh...nevermind that."

"What do you mean 'nevermind'?" Tink's voice grew, her skin paling, "Need I remind you that she can be just as dangerous as he is, even more so in some cases. Tiger Lily is not one to be trifled with." she practically couldn't utter the name, her heart broke every time she looked back at the fond memories of her friends. A past that was completely gone now.

"I know," he persists, "But she isn't our most troubling concern, Pan is."

"Why do I have a feeling you're not telling me something?" her eyes narrowed.

"Because," he says, running a hand over his face, "it will just overcomplicate things further."

"Then it's something you're not telling them about her either." she concludes, "Am I right in assuming so?"

"Yes, but like I said, Tiger Lily is not our biggest problem. It's better not to pry." the captain maintains.

"For everyone else, or for you, Hook?" Her tone dripping with wariness, "You're very concerned about protecting her all of a sudden, weren't you mortal enemies once?" she challenged.

"It's different now," he sighs, when he sees where Tink's line of thought he quickly adds, "No! It's not like that. Trust me, lass. For old times' sake."

"Alright," Tink concedes, suspiciously easy, "But what happens when they figure out you've been holding information?"

"Which is why I'm trying not to over complicate things. And - we'll cross that bridge once we get there." the man reiterates.

"You better know what you're doing Captain Hook, or else it's all our lives on the line." her arms crossed over her darkly clad chest, "I still say Tiger Lily is someone we need to watch out for."

"Never said she wasn't." he retorts, "But when it's time, Tinker Bell." Hook finished. She watches him walk away, why was he so concerned for the girl? A depression comes over her a little suddenly it seems she cannot escape these bouts nowadays. Though some might say that not much time has passed at all (typically, these will be the residents of Neverland), a lot has changed. The Neverland she returned to had never been the same as what she first left. She wanted the old days back, when it was all rather simple and, as Hook said, uncomplicated. When she had her friends still.

Tinker Bell was about to retire for the night when she approaches Regina sitting away from the others. She suddenly finds herself not tired at all, her curiosity piquing (it really was one of her worse traits), she decides to ask something that's been bothering her for years. It was the type that kept you awake at night, restless. She sits beside the petulant woman, "Did you ever go back and find him? The man with the lion tattoo?"

Regina answered next to her, fatigued. "No."

"Unreal." Tinker Bell states pensively, "Do you know how selfish that is?"

Regina became inquisitive, "Well, it's a lot of things. But how is it selfish?"

Tink had a faraway look, "Because you didn't just ruin your life. You ruined _his_." she pointed out, this story had been played out before. She was familiar with things falling apart. Maybe that was her destiny, to know and watch and be incapable to stop it.

* * *

 ** _"Fairies have to be one thing or_ _the_ other, _because being so small they_ unfortunately _have ro_ _om for one feeling only at a time. They are, however, allowed to change, only it must be a complete change." – J.M. Barrie, Peter Pan_**


	7. Nasty Habits: part I

**Chapter Seven - Nasty Habits**

* * *

 _ **The Enchanted Forest, the village of Hamelin. Then.**_

 _The mayor of Hamelin stood atop a tall box, this new issue at hand was pressing, yet he was trying best as he can to exude an aura of calm over the frantic crowd._

 _His attempts to reassure his people were hindered however by the sudden appearance of the Dark One. The Dark One was known far and wide, and those who did not know him by face knew him by ill reputation. It was not uncommon to hear of the newest exploits of the Dark One - a greedy youth transformed into a swine in some town a few leagues away; an accident come to befall a lord's manor on his daughter's wedding day after rejecting the offer of a cloaked traveller; spinning a barn full of hay into real gold - such was the power of fear, and fear spread well especially when bogeymen come to life._

 _A few shocked gasps were released, others looked to hide behind their peers but the mayor himself held his ground as the Dark One, Rumpelstiltskin, walked briskly into the village square, all terror, and no mirth. "You think you can hide him from me?" he shouts with anger. "Where is he? Where's my son?!"_

 _Their situation was becoming stickier by the second. The mayor once again made an attempt at placating his audience, clearly, there had been some misunderstanding, "He's not here, Dark One. I swear!"_

 _Rumplestiltskin juts out his finger in accusation, "Don't lie to me! Magic has led me to this rathole of a town! His trail ends here in Hamelin." No one dared try to meet his eyes but the mayor. "I know you're hiding him from me."_

 _Quickly, the mayor steps down from his makeshift pedestal and comes closer to the creature in somber fashion, "No. No, we're not. Many of our children went missing last night," he tried to explain, "lured from their beds by some unholy music."_

 _Rumpelstiltskin was skeptical. "What kind of music?"_

" _From the Piper." the mayor answered him, "Only the children could hear it. Some of them tried telling their parents, but no one believed them. They were sent back to bed. And this morning, they were gone." A sob came from a weeping mother, her husband had held her as she turned her face into her husband's chest._

" _And who was playing it?" Rumpel questioned, his fingers miming the playing of the pipes._

" _No one saw his face. O-only a figure hidden by a pied cloak of multicolor patches," Rumpelstiltskin had grown more curious, the mayor's words seeming to have an effect on him, "leading the children from their homes and into the forest. Don't you see? It... It has to be the same man that has taken your son." the mayor inferred._

 _Rumplestiltskin started to tremble in a silent fury, "Then whoever this Pied-Piper is, he's about to play his last note."_

* * *

 **Neverland. Present day.**

The fire had crackled softly, as if it too, was aware of the secrecy of it all and the danger of crossing Pan and his Lost Boys. Mary Margaret sat beside Emma as her daughter laid out the plan of attack. Though it was not the appropriate time to think so, and more than little vain, she thought that the way Emma had built the makeshift plan of Pan's camp was quite accomplished, the mom inside of her beamed with shallow pride. It was not so different as the ones she had made in her days as the traitor/renegade/bandit Snow White, or more recently, with her students as they created dioramas at the school in Storybrooke where she taught. She hid her small smile and paid extra attention.

While Emma was still growing acclimated to what she had dubbed 'family stuff', she had felt that this, the running, the planning, the sword-fighting, this was her finally being in her own element. Alright, maybe not so much with the sword-fighting, but it did trigger the muscle memories she'd gathered in her years living in Boston as a professional bailbonds-person."This is where they're keeping Henry." Emma motioned, her stick dragging across the ground as she drew, "Pan's compound. According to, uh…"

"Tinker Bell." The ex-faerie chirps with a twinge of a smile on her lips. She drops the bundle of kindling she previously held in her arms off to the side. Tinker Bell was the newest addition to their rag-tag group of heroes and villains off to save Henry and get out of Neverland, though she did not yet feel comfortable being so close to the Storybrooke group. Years of living alone had not done her any favours.

"Yeah, I know." Emma breathes, slightly overwhelmed, "Still weird to say." she confesses.

" _Tink_ is fine." she provides.

"Not sure that's any better." Emma interjects, "Anyway, _she_ says that there are sentries positioned across the front, which is why we are gonna come in through the back entrance here." her stick hits the different points of the compound's layout, wanting to make sure everyone was on the same page. "She's gonna talk her way in. Once she makes sure the coast is clear, then we are going to sneak on in."

All this uncertainty had made Tink anxiously pace this way and that, double-checking, triple-checking everything in preparation. "You'll still have to deal with any lost boys once you're inside."

"I think we can handle a few children with pointy sticks." Regina supplies with confidence from where she sat.

"It's not the sticks you need to worry about." Tinker Bell voices, rounding on the dark-haired woman, "It's the poison they're dipped in." Across the camp, David and Killian's eyes meet in a worried glance, unseen by the rest of them, both knowing the very present danger of the poison native to the island.

Mary Margaret nods, "Dreamshade. Hook warned us." she adjusted her white shirt for something to do, they were all terribly restless.

"Good." Tinker Bell proclaims, "Because one nick, and you'll spend the last of-"

"Poison sticks equal death." said David somewhat quickly, standing on his feet; his voice lowering once he realises the small outburst. "We got it. Now when can we put this rescue mission into action?"

Tinker Bell answers him with speed, she wanted nothing more than to leave Neverland. "I'm ready to go, just as soon you tell me the exit plan." Her smile fades when the others seemed to come up empty, much to her fears, "You do have an escape plan, don't you?" she says, more softly.

Mary Margaret was hesitant, and Regina couldn't help but grimace at her response, "It's... it's more of a last-minute trip."

"If you don't have a way off this island, then none of this matters." Tinker Bell cries.

"We'll figure it out." the Storybrooke mayor mentions, wanting to cool off the situation.

"You'll figure it out? No one comes and goes from this place unless he allows it." the ex-faerie was more than exasperated, she threw her arms up, "This is a waste of time." Tink had put her head in her hands.

David also had thought to calm her down, "When it comes to family, we always find a way."

But Tink was finished with excuses. She couldn't afford this plan to fail, or for Pan to retaliate. "You don't get it. Here. Let me show you something." she says, pulling a contraption from her pouch and raising it to them, "You know what this is?"

"A watch." Emma says simply.

"I got it from the people who brought your son here for Pan." Tink said coolly.

Emma rounded on her at once, her words spitting out in rapid fire, "Greg and Tamara? Where are they? Why'd they give you that?" They must know something. And if they didn't, she could still kick their asses for kidnapping and endangering their kids.

Tinker Bell remained composed, "I got it off the girl's body." When Emma made a grab for the wristwatch she put it closer to her chest, scavenged or not, it was hers now, "Spent half the night cleaning the blood off it. And the other guy... Well, there wasn't enough left of him to find anything useful."

Though it seemed quite sadistic of her, Regina could not help but smile at this thought, Greg and Tamara got what they deserved, especially after taking the only two people she truly gave a damn about anymore.

"This is what Pan does to people he employs. What do you think he's gonna do to _you_? I'm not sticking my neck on Pan's chopping block without a way off this island. When you figure that out, you know where I live." Tink said decidedly before stomping off, muttering to herself in annoyance.

"Where the hell is she going?" Mary Margaret questioned in a panicked voice.

"I'll get her, bring her back." David expressed about to turn around.

Emma cut him off, "Don't. She's right. If there's one thing I've learned, you never break in somewhere unless you know the way out." there was a knowing look in her green eyes.

Regina spoke flippantly, "And where'd you get that, in bailbonds-person school?"

"Neal taught me that." Nobody dared to oppose her, not wanting to complicate things further.

David then turned to the pirate, "What about you, Hook? You got off this island before."

Hook nodded, coming closer, his eyes never turning upwards to look at them, he sighs softly, "Yes, aboard my ship, which would require some form of magic to create a portal, which... I got from Pan in a deal I don't think he's ready to repeat." he says dejectedly.

The mayor's continuing dislike for the leader of the Lost Boys grew by the second, "So no one's ever left the island without Pan's permission?"

"One man. Her partner in crime," Killian said, turning to Emma. "Neal."

"How?" The blonde said, eyes widening.

"Maybe we can find out." Killian offered as he drew the band back into the Neverjungle. "We should hurry, the longer we stay here the worse it will be. This rock tends to change people - and not for the better."

One could argue that Hook was exactly the type of man to exploit the leverage he had over others, that secrets were just another currency he could use to barter with or shape to his advantage. But he had hoped that the time he had spent with Emma and the rest of his Storybrooke troupe had influenced him to be more like the honourable man he once was. Trekking their way through the ever-dense thicket, he keeps his mouth shut, never voicing his growing concern for the Dreamshade racing its way to David's heart, nor of his memories of the girl with the bright red hair and her former turns as one of Neverland's most fearsome predators.

* * *

 **Meanwhile. The Lost Boys' Camp.**

With a critical eye, Rose Mills watched silently as the boys hooted, hollered and danced around the blaze of the bonfire. These youths had beat at drums, stomped their feet, jumped and tumbled, their stage framed by a deep green curtain of the jungle. She hears a rustle to her right and feels a familiar gaze settle on her, knowing who it was in an instant. "I see the boys have grown more violent than ever," she comments aloofly, her thin arms crossing over her chest. Rubbing her wrists, she tried to soothe the rope-burns there, the boys had already moved on and gone back to their reveling, not even ten minutes after their altercation with a loaded crossbow. Rose wasn't about to let that go just yet.

Pan's mouth twists, he could still feel her anger simmering on the surface, "The boys will be boys, Princess." he says, motioning to the wild festivities. "You've always coddled them too much."

"So," she said, her eyes still searching the crowd. "Where are they? Where have you hidden them?"

"Who?" the boy's brow lifts.

She pauses. "The boys. My boys. Tootles... Nibs, Curly, Slightly, the Twins," Rose had assumed that Pan must have hidden them in a cave somewhere in a remote part of the jungle in the chance that she might turn them against him. She had observed to her curiosity that the new Lost Ones were made up of older boys, looking to be no younger than thirteen.

Pan rubs his chin for a moment as if trying very hard to remember. 'Oh them? I sent them away."

"What?" she says, incredulous. She faced him straight on, searching for the truth in his eyes, she could feel his breath on her cheeks.

He sends her a wicked grin, "Oh they're back where they came from." he informs her, "They were annoying- reminded me of you." Rose blinked, having fallen silent. "Only Felix and some of the older ones got to stay. Though you won't recognise them at all." His voice was so flippant about it, so casual and devoid of any depth of emotion. It scared her, chills ran up her spine.

Rose couldn't believe what she was hearing, "They didn't- You kicked them out? When they had no place else to go, no homes, no family? They were orphans."

Pan shrugged his shoulders, "They didn't follow the rules." he answered simply, his eyes cold. "See, Princess, only the _loyal_ stay. That's how it goes. Besides, they got a Neverland education. They would have learned to fend for themselves." Pan no longer took in lost children but instead recruited boys on the cusp of manhood. Those forgotten and neglected boys more enamoured with wild freedom, seduced by danger and adventure in a place where nobody could tell them what to do. They were mean looking youths who carried matchsticks in their pockets, who enjoyed lighting flames, who openly played with fires. They didn't know to fear being burned.

The words Pan threw meanwhile were like icy daggers stabbing at her gut, Rose grew hot in her fury. "The twins were barely nine! Tootles was six!"

"And how long had they been nine and six?!" Pan exploded, "The lessons you gave them surely didn't help them keep their innocence! It made no difference, nine or six, they finally got a taste of that reality they deserved. They asked for it," he said, jabbing a finger at her chest, "they wanted to leave as soon as you did. Cried for you every night. I couldn't stand it! So the hardships they would have faced, all alone on the streets? They were on you. It was you who put those not so lovely thoughts in their heads." Pan didn't miss the way she flinched at that comment.

"They were our family!" she said in protest.

The boy nodded."Which you abandoned." he gave a loud scoff, "Oh please, Princess. I see you on your high horse, but don't pretend you don't have blood on your hands. You yourself were quite ruthless after all. Your own brand of cruelty. Habit forming, wasn't it?"

Rose was shaking her head. "That-that wasn't me. You made me do those things."

"No, no, Tiger. You did. And all by yourself. I only gave you a little nudge. But you, you had your fun." he said with a wicked grin. "I wonder...these vices are hard to break, nasty habits and all that. Know what I think? I think the Tiger's still in there." Pan whispered, pointing to her head, "How long have you kept her locked up? I bet she's just waiting to come out and have her fun again."

Before she had known what she was doing, she had taken Pan's knife from his belt and found herself pressing it to his neck. The boy's eyes had grown wide with surprise, but he was not frightened, "Oh there you are Tiger. See, I was right." He tutted at her, looking extremely pleased with himself, a silent smug laughter had filled him.

The girl was finding it hard to breathe, tears brimmed in her eyes. Something in her just took over and it scared her. She had not meant to do it. She wasn't thinking straight. "Leave me alone." a sob had escaped her. Dropping his knife, she had nothing more to say, Pan once again broke down her walls.

Rose needed some air, racked with guilt, she stalked away from the camp. She could not suffocate the guilt and rage stoking inside her, nor could she prevent darker thoughts from coming into the fray. She was a monster. No, Pan was the monster, she had to remind herself. She could not believe that he had sent away the boys that for so long had been their family. More than ever, she felt the resolve to leave this place bolster, but not before she gets Henry, and not before they had dealt with Pan once and for all.

* * *

 _ **Then. Hamelin.**_

 _The Dark One had staked out on the rooftops of the town, He sat silently on the rickety shingles, waiting patiently for the Piper to show. He had been waiting since the sun had gone down, the orange afternoon melted away into the purple cloak of nightfall. The streets were bare, windows shuttered, doors closed. The town of Hamelin waited with baited breath for something to happen. It was not until the dead of night when the townspeople were all in their beds that the rats started to play._

 _As if on command, one by one, young boys began to poke their heads out of windows. Still in their night clothes, they had fled their homes, eyes glazed over, heads almost swaying to an unheard tune. They strode out of town, distracted, too hypnotised to even notice the Dark One stalking their tails as they filed into the darkened forest. There they joined a camp where a small bonfire had been lit, the boys had donned on masks and furs and picked up the instruments that were laid out for them on the forest floor. The Hamelin boys had joined a larger group already reveling by the fire, their twisting and leaping bodies casting menacing shadows, they whooped and laughed in abandonment. Acrobats dancing to the will of the pipes. They felt careless and free. Some clapped, a few rested by the fire and played instruments made from animal skins, all the while playing along to this unintelligible music in their heads. It was a party, loud, raucous and they seemed to have only just begun._

 _Rumpelstiltskin began searching for his son amidst the night's festivities. "Bae? Bae!" he began calling out to the crowd. No one seemed to pay him to mind, all too focused on the dance. He started seizing the boys by their shoulders hoping to discover his son among them. Each of their faces was obscured by masks of different kinds showcasing different animals, a wolf, a bear, a boar… But Baelfire was nowhere to be seen and the boys all shrugged him off as they continued on._

 _Beyond the flames of the bonfire, Rumpelstiltskin spots the Piper, a hooded figure in a pied cloak. The more he blew into the pipes, the louder the tune of the song and the more frenzied the dance became. Rumpel was relieved that his magic proved to be stronger than the enchanted pipe's, and though he could hear the music, it did not seem to control him like the others, it merely made his head swim._

 _A hood provided the Piper's anonymity as his body moved with the song, his pied cloak looking anything but lowly and ill-repaired. There was something in his step that was equal parts musicality and youthful vigour. The Piper himself was a slight looking fellow, and his person was presented as if he were no more than a foot soldier in this small faction of boys, but the way he mesmerized this little troop suggests he was something more akin to an actor in complete command of his stage. Years of developed intuition and his proclivity for magic had told the Dark One that there is something more than meets the eye with this mysterious player._

 _But the Piper was not alone, he was accompanied by a leaner figure whose body slinked around his with ease and practice, a dancer wearing the mask of a ferocious jungle cat. The mask was well crafted and covered the top half of their face, as well as the sides and the top of their head, leaving only the mouth and nose unobstructed through the gaping maw of the beast that was cast in a perpetual snarl. Its colour was a dirty ochre accompanied by black stripes, complete with a set of silver whiskers and a wiry mane that protruded over the edges of the piece. Compared to the others that their fellows were wearing, this particular mask seemed to had been made with a keener attention to detail and an accomplished hand. And though the activity was just as wild as their comrades, the air of this person was more graceful, enunciating their movements with dramatic and languid gestures. All in all, the effect of envisioning these partners was something unexpected, terrifying, and captivating in summary. The Pied Piper and The Jungle Cat shared their dance as the party swelled around them._

 _Wasting no more time, Rumpel at once teleported himself across the fire and broke the two merrymakers apart. Grabbing the Piper's instrument, he destroyed it in a swift motion. Though the music was gone, clearly the revelers were still under a spell. "Off with your guise Piper, there's no fooling me! Now where's my son?!" the Dark One demanded._

" _Is that what they're calling me?" The Piper had asked, "We both know who I really am." the hooded musician turned to face Rumpel and drew back his hood. The Dark One was potently taken aback, he had not anticipated this, and the ghosts of his pasts were not usually so tangible. "Been a long time, laddie. Glad you could make the show." The Piper smiled casually like it was nothing, but Rumpelstiltskin knew better, he had not seen Peter Pan for an age and did not expect to meet the boy again, ever._

" _Surprised to see me Rumpel?" Peter Pan quirks a dark brow upward, his grin widening, "I don't blame you. I'm a little surprised myself. Aren't we Princess?" his companion materialises at once beside him, pushing up their mask. Tiger Lily greets Rumpelstiltskin with a wry smile._

" _How rude of you to stop our dance." her voice drips with petulance, "I see you've grown Rumpel, oh, but it isn't by very much..." Tiger Lily says, giggling into her hand, the other rested atop Pan's shoulder, her cheek leaned against it. The Jungle Cat's teeth glinted in the firelight._

" _And look who's become the Dark One!" Pan exclaims in a proud tone. "Good for you."_

 _Having been stunned silent, the Dark One tried to regain his wits about him. "What are you doing here?"_

" _I'm looking for more Lost Boys, of course. You can never have too many friends." Pan baited, Tiger Lily nodding along._

 _A look of horror struck the Dark One's features, "You're here for my son."_

" _I am." came Pan's reply._

 _Rumpelstiltskin shook his head, "It's gonna take a lot more than a magic pipe to take my son!"_

" _The only thing magic about this pipe, is that only certain boys can hear it. Boys who feel unloved, boys who feel lost." the youth's voice grew sharp, "I guess that's why you can hear it Rumpel. Isn't it?"_

" _Yes, Neverland has very select entry requirements." Tiger Lily mentions nonchalantly, "But, you'd know all about that, right Rumpel? Didn't you want to be us once? Aren't you lost, still, after all these years?" her jabs were sickly sweet and mocking._

" _You were my friends, but don't think you know me." Rumpel spat, "You don't. Not anymore."_

" _Oh I think we do," Pan asserted, "Even with all that power...you're nothing more than an unloved, lonely, lost boy." he laughs, raising his lean arms, "And my island, is the home of all lost things and Lost Boys."_

 _Rumpelstiltskin's face crumpled. This was the Peter Pan and Tiger Lily he knew as a child? They were his friends once before! Determined, the Dark One spoke with finality. "Baelfire will not be a part of it."_

" _He's already a part of it. The question is," Pan challenged, "What are you willing to do to get him back?" By his side, Tiger Lily chuckled._

" _I'm gonna make you regret ever asking that question." The Dark One told them._

" _I understand you're upset." Pan retorted, "Most parents' worst fear is that their child will be taken away from them. But that's not yours, is it Rumpel? No. You're not afraid Baelfire will be taken from you, you're afraid he'll leave. Little Rumpel, abandoned again, it's what you're good at after all."_

 _Rumpelstiltskin had stepped back unconsciously, as Pan made his way forward. The Head of the Lost Boys knew he had the upper hand, "Everyone you've ever loved has abandoned you, hadn't they? Like Bae's mother, Milah? Not to mention your own father...Why should Baelfire be any different?"_

" _Well, if I were in his shoes I'd be positively afraid to go home to a Crocodile." Tiger teased, grinning, her nose in a wrinkle. She clutched at her chest in fake shock,"I heard that old Croc has already eaten half his village… I'd wager that poor child couldn't wait to get away."_

" _You're wrong." was the only thing Rumpel could say._

" _Are we? Well, let's find out, shall we? You ask Baelfire whether he wants to come to Neverland with me or stay here with you. If he wants to stay, I'll leave and never return. Deal?"_

 _The Dark One's voice was small, "I don't have to make any deals with you."_

" _But why wouldn't you? If you're so sure he'll stay?" Pan was in a betting mood, and nothing good would come of it._

* * *

 **Present. The Lost Boy's Camp.**

Henry had sat alone, he did not join the festivities but had chosen to draw in the dirt with a short stick he had found. A little while ago he had seen Peter Pan talking to Rose before she marched off in anger. He had wondered what they were talking about but didn't bother asking Pan about it. Rose had told him several times to stay away from Pan since they had been brought to camp. Pan was dangerous and he can be quick to anger, Henry didn't want to cross him any time soon.

Yet Rose still hadn't come back. Henry wondered where his moms are and if they were looking for him. It must have been at least two, maybe three days since he's been gone from Storybrooke. At this rate, it was getting harder and harder to tell, time was weird in Neverland like that. Everything here full of danger, the boys especially, and he knew only to trust Pan as far as he could spit, but the Lost Boy had a way of talking that made to compel. Before he could think about it more Peter Pan had approached him with a friendly smile. "You don't want to join in the celebration, Henry?"

The younger boy shrugged, eyes downcast, "Nothing to celebrate."

"Nothing to celebrate?" Pan repeats, chuckling. "Henry, this whole party is to celebrate you."

"Me? Why?"

"Because you've come to save magic of course." Pan had voiced it like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "And I for one, can't think of a more deserving celebration than that. Just look at them," he says, gesturing to the raving group.

Henry was resolved, he heard Rose's voice inside his head telling him to keep his distance from Pan, "I'm not like them. Or you."

"Sure you are." Pan grinned, "Don't tell her I told you this - she'll only get embarrassed - but Rose, was actually quite the party-starter when she lived here in Neverland. She'd stand atop a tall rock or climb a tree, and she'd get us all on our feet, she was really good at that. She and I would dance until sunrise." the boy said, reminiscing. He looked like he was enjoying the memory. He actually looked happy, eager to get Henry up and having fun. "Like any boy, maybe a song will get you on your feet." Pan had pulled out his pipes and placed it close to his lips.

The Lost Boy began to play, but Henry only heard the air he was expelled from his cheeks. "Sorry. I-I don't hear anything." He appreciated the older boy's attempts at cheering him up.

Pan's face fell, he had stopped playing abruptly. "Interesting. You see, this pipe's enchanted, Henry. It can only be heard by certain children."

"Like who?"

However, before Pan could elaborate, the older boy's attention was stolen by Felix, his right-hand boy, who came out of the Neverjungle with an ugly scowl. "You'll find out soon enough, I promise." was all Peter Pan had supplied before he left. Maybe Pan wasn't as horrible as people had described him to be, he seemed to genuinely want to have Henry as his friend. After all, he healed Rose's ankle, kept Henry fed and entertained and tried very hard to make Henry feel like he belonged. Maybe he deserved a second chance, and regarding Pan's conflict with Rose, Henry had simply chalked it up to some unresolved tension. It was their business what happened between Pan and Rose.

Pan had walked away from the boy to meet with his lieutenant, "What?" he demanded, "I know that look, what happened?"

Felix hated letting him down, especially when he was entrusted with such an important task. "Baelfire." was the answer he gave, "I'm afraid he got away."

"Well, why didn't you get him back?" the other boy barked.

"I tried." Felix told him. "I followed his trail and found two of our sentries knocked out...By a sleeping spell."

Pan's brows furrowed as he came to the inevitable answer, "The Dark One." Felix nodded in confirmation. "So father and son have been reunited."

"They'll be coming for them." Felix said, nodding towards Henry and Rose, who had just returned and holding the younger child in her arms. "We should move them somewhere safe. If they find out someone's looking for them...Anyway, they belong to us now, we can't risk losing them." His eyes had shifted to the redhead, his sentimentalities giving him away.

"Now, now, Felix." Pan reprimanded him, "Where's your sense of adventure? We can't end the party when the real fun is about to begin." His eyes too had drifted to the two newcomers in his camp. After all this time, he'd be damned if he ever let them go without a fight.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the camp, Rose was making her apologies to Henry. "Hey, sorry I took so long. Pan just...he knows how to press my buttons. He's getting to me and I'm too stupid for letting him!" she said in frustration, "I'll try better." she reassured the boy, putting her arm around his shoulders.

"S'okay Rosie." He murmured as she began to pet his hair.

"What were you talking about?" she inquired.

Henry gave a big yawn and smacked his lips together. "Nothing, really. He wanted me to join in with them."

"You don't have to do anything he tells you to, Henry. The Lost Boys aren't exactly role-model material." she says softly, noticing how tired he was. "I suppose you haven't had much rest since we got here huh?"

"Mhmm." he said, curling under her shoulder.

"I think the Lost Boys will just end up ignoring me if I tell them to be quiet. But why don't you get some rest?" the girl offered, pushing his head to rest on her collar. "How 'bout a lullaby?"

"I'm too old for those, Rosie." he says, stifling another yawn.

"If you say so, bud." she smiles, gently rocking him and humming under her breath sweetly. Now with the dark curse broken, Rose remembered all those nights singing Henry lullabies to get him to sleep, sometimes Regina had been too busy at work and came home too late to send Henry to bed, but Rose loved the time she got to spend with him. She helped raise this kid who was more like her own brother than a nephew. They did so many things together, and Henry was growing up so fast...she wondered just how long she had left to share these moments with him.

It led her to think back to when she sang her own Lost Boys to sleep. It was a bit harder back then, there were so many of the little ones to look after. They all used to fight over her attention, over who could choose the game, the next story, the next lullaby. They had all been so eager for love and affection and a sense of family. Long before Bae or even Rumpel had sought out Neverland, Peter and Lily took in those left abandoned by their own. Those who called out the loudest with their despair and loneliness. She and Peter had tried their best to give them good dreams, and soon, when that was not enough, they were brought to Neverland to escape the cruelties of the real world. Neverland back then was a proper home, but something had changed along the way. Deep in her heart, Rose knew she was to blame. It had been her fault, one that she was going to fix some way or another.

* * *

 _"Peter had become the leader of a merry band of youngsters, aged six to fourteen, who followed the Wild Boy wherever he went and seemed to understand his unintelligible noises. If they did not understand, then they pretended to. The life of a princess has many advantages, but I envied those children for their time with Peter and for what seemed to me to be a simple, carefree existence." ― Christopher Daniel Mechling,_ ** _Peter: The Untold True Story_**

* * *

 **A/N:** Hey all, I hope you guys are still enjoying this story. Just a quick question, what are your feelings towards the new seasons of OUAT? I've kind of stopped watching around season five because I was really getting into so many other shows since I got Netflix, and because I live in Australia, the episodes I do catch of OUAT have been sporadic at best and not really in order. So I wanted to know whether it was worth it to watch the sixth and seventh seasons, I know (at least from what I experienced from seasons four and five) that the writing was a little all over the place, and while I enjoyed some of the writing, there were definitely quite a few episodes where the quality was slipping and I had the feeling that they were really only trying to stretch out the story at the cost of wasting character development.

Of what I do know of the latest season, they sort of did a reboot thing with the story (and while I personally love Regina/Ronnie's new look), I'm still quite skeptical. I also know that they did introduce a Tiger Lily character in season seven, and I am not trying to erase that version of the character. For the sake of this story though, and the creative decisions I have made, I can say that this very much takes place in an AU where I have different plans for a few characters and their origins. You can say that it's one of the stories that take place in another storybook with a different version of events. Anyway, let me know what you think!

As always, please review, the encouragement and insight really means a lot. PM me if you want to talk about everything and nothing at all. :) Any questions? Comments? Hearing from you really makes my day!

I do not own any characters you might recognise, they are the property of Disney. I do own my OC (Rose/Tiger Lily).

Many thanks! And happy fanfic hunting!

-HannahBananasxx


	8. Nasty Habits: part II

_**Chapter Eight - Nasty Habits pt. II**_

* * *

 **Neverland, The Lost Boys' Camp.**

Peter Pan was sitting by the fire, planning his next move until a wave of magic engulfed the camp and snuffed all out like a light. Lost Boys fell all around him, slumped over in awkward poses, some even having piled atop each other. Only Pan remained awake, his magic resisting a common sleeping spell. He should have expected this, for Rumpel and Bae to be waiting to strike at an opportune moment. The only ones seemed to not have been disturbed was Henry and his Princess, who were curled into each other sleeping as soundly as they had been for a quarter of an hour now.

"We have a guest!" proclaimed Pan to no one in particular. "No doubt someone who knows how much I like guessing games. Who could it be?" he mockingly asks himself. "I guess...The Dark One." Pan's magic stirs a dying flame to a now roaring fire. The flame lighting the figure of his esteemed guest. Three dark lines decorated the right side of Rumpelstiltskin's face, Pan takes this as a ready challenge and laughs to himself. "Come to save Henry, have you, laddie? How exciting. The Dark One ready to sacrifice his life for his family." he knows better than to drop his guard when Bae should not be far behind his father, likely skulking around to get a better position against Pan. "Speaking of family, you can come out now Baelfire."

At once, the torch nearby is lit by Pan's magic, knowing his cover is blown, Neal chooses to quickly walk out from his hiding spot, his crossbow already drawn and aimed at the Lost Boy. "The name's Neal, now." he reminds his former leader.

Pan waves a dismissive hand, "New name, but the same old tricks. It's heartwarming to see father and son working together. Especially after you abandoned him, Rumpel." he eyes the man in question with a pointed look. "Now, _this_ is a real family reunion."

Rumpelstiltskin didn't move, but urged his son, "What are you waiting for?"

"I got this," Neal assured him as he let the notched arrow loose.

The arrow went flying straight towards Peter Pan's chest who caught it expertly as he had, many times before. "Clever. But we've been through this before, Baelfire." the boy says somewhat arrogantly. "Have you remembered nothing?"

It wasn't lost to Neal that the boy had begun to pant, knowing his plan had worked, he dispatched of the weapon in his hand. "I remember plenty. That's why I didn't coat the tip." quipped Neal. By now, Pan dropped the arrow he had held with a grimace, his hand feeling cold and numb, a stinging sensation spreading from his palm upwards to his arm and shoulder.

A blue glow immobilised Pan's body, "Well how about that? I'm impressed." he says, it wasn't every day he was outsmarted. He enjoyed this new Baelfire. He had guts. "But are you sure you're really saving them, Bae?"

"What could be worse than leaving them here with you?" Neal said carrying Henry on one shoulder as his father scooped the girl up into his arms.

"Why don't you ask your father? Sometimes the people we should fear the most are the ones closest to us."

"What's he talking about?" Neal asked, turning to his father.

Rumpelstiltskin didn't meet his eyes, trying very hard to look busy instead as he shifted the girl in his arms. "Don't listen to him."

"You mean you haven't told him?" Pan baited.

"Told me what?"

"Why about the prophecy of course."

Neal was growing more frustrated."What prophecy? What's he mean?"

The boy was smug, "The prophecy that says you've been tricked." his tone became more serious, "Your father isn't here to rescue your son. He's here to murder him." Neal was still shaking his head as both he and his father made their way out into the jungle with Henry and Rose. It won't be too long now, Pan thought. Now he'll just have to wait until the squid ink wears off so he could steal back what's his. And, if he was lucky, which he usually is, the whole Rumpel/Baelfire problem will take care of itself.

* * *

 **Later, elsewhere. Neverland.**

He had just gotten him back. His son was alive! Tired of losing him, he hoped his honesty would be enough to persuade Bae to stay, "There was a seer, and she told me of a prophecy...that a boy would help reunite me with you. And that boy...would be my undoing." Rumpelstiltskin tried to explain himself, but the more he talked, just served to make his son hate him more.

"Henry." Neal provided. Neal was tired and angry. Try as he did, all he wanted to do when he was younger - and even now- was to redeem his father. But after everything, every time, without fail, his father only seemed to break his heart.

"I didn't know it was gonna be my own grandson, til I found you in New York and discovered you were his father." Rumpel pleaded.

Their heated argument was reaching boiling point. "You were planning on getting rid of him, whoever he was, weren't you? To try and cheat fate, to get around the prophecy? You cold blooded son of a bitch." though his voice was no more than a whisper, the statement spoke volumes about Rumpel's own character. Whatsmore, it was coming from his own son. "You were gonna kill him."

"Yes." came the short truth.

Neal had believed that there are instances in this life, ones where you have to tell yourself to walk away. This was it. Neal could go no further. Could no longer try to justify his father's actions, he thought perhaps it was wrong to leave his father all those years ago, but this made it infinitely clearer. He could no longer find the good man that once was inside Rumpelstiltskin. He walked away then. He was going to do it again now. "Get back," he tells Rumpel, stepping away, widening the distance between them. "You stay away from us!"

"That was then, things have changed!" Rumpel had pleaded, his palms up. "I-I didn't come here to Neverland to hurt Henry." he was becoming more panicked as his son paled and shunned him. "I came here to save him."

Neal glowered, "After what you just told me, I'm supposed to believe you?!"

"I won't lie to you, Bae. self-preservation has been a nasty habit I've had my whole life, but I came here to break it. To do the right thing and to save your son." Rumpel promised. "Even if that meant sacrificing my own life." his voice softened to a whisper. "You have to trust me." his dark eyes begging.

He could not trust his father, he will not. It's not just his life at stake anymore. He has his son to think of, and Rose as well. They needed him to get them out of there, and the longer he spent with his father, the harder it will be to keep the people he loved safe. "How can I?"

* * *

 _ **Hamelin. Then.**_

 _The drums were still playing and once more Tiger Lily readjusted her mask and began to dance. Climbing atop a tree-stump, like a shaman performing an intricate ritual she crouched and moved her arms about recklessly. "Rage on!" she intoned in a delighted voice, "The night is ours! Be free!" Like a charm, she reinvigorated the boys like stoking a blaze._

 _The Dark Once still looked lost, "You don't even recognise him, do you Rumple?" asked the Piper._

" _Well, how could I when he's wearing a mask?" Rumpel said, his eyes, searching the crowd._

" _He might be wearing a mask, but that's not the reason. Look at him," Pan said, indicating to Baelfire who had been with the revelers all along. "Playing with the boys, out in the world." From above them, Tiger watched the whole exchange with amusement. Baelfire's mask had hidden the boy's guise, but more than that, his liveliness, his joy, it was something his father had not seen in a very long time. "He's happy, Rumpel." That was what deemed him so unrecognizable._

 _Rumpel caught Bae by his shoulders, halting his son's movements. The lone wolf was unmasked, his disguise removed, it revealed the face of young Baelfire. "Son. Are you alright?"_

" _I'm fine." the boys said ardently. He himself was surprised, and hadn't even realised his father was there, "Why are you here?"_

 _Rumpel spoke with gentleness reserved only for his son. "I know you think I don't care about you, son, but I do. And I'm here to prove it."_

" _How?" The query somewhat stupefied the powerful Dark One as eyes drifted to him._

" _Go ahead, Rumpel." Pan urged. He wondered if Baelfire would choose Neverland over his dismal life with his father. Tiger Lily smiled, certain that the boy would come to them, in the little while they had spoken, Baelfire was almost leaping at the prospect of seeing adventure. But hers and Pan's smiles were strippped away when Rumpel, suddenly unsure of himself, hastily took hold of his son's cloak._

" _Papa! What are you doing?" asked a bewildered Bae._

 _Pan became flushed, his voice was a growl. "You're gonna regret not taking my deal, Rumpel!"_

" _I'm protecting you." came his father's promise, enveloping the both of them in a red smoke that teleported them away into the safety of their hovel._

" _Don't touch me!" Bae yelled, wrenching his arms free. "Get away!"_

" _It's all right now, Bae." Rumpel tried calming him. "You're safe."_

" _Safe? I was never in danger. The Piper and the Cat, they're my friends. They were all my friends!"_

" _The Piper wants everyone to think that but that's not the truth. You have to believe me. He would have hurt you."_

" _Why?" asked Bae, stepping forward. "Who is he? Another person that you abused with your power?"_

" _His name is Peter Pan, and the girl he was with is called Tiger Lily. I've known them since I was a boy. Growing up, we were incredibly close."_

" _So they're immortal too, like you."_

" _He wields a different kind of magic, it's from another land. Neverland. He betrayed me when I needed him the most. He can't be trusted." Rumpelstiltskin spoke with quiet sincerity._

" _What happened?" Baelfire wanted to know._

" _All that matters is that he fooled me for a long time, but I see his true nature now, it is darker and more repulsive than you should ever be exposed to!" Rumpel defended, "They tried to take you away from me, Bae. They steal children away from their loved ones, promising them all kinds of things. But it doesn't amount up to anything, they'll only be using you."_

 _His son had heard enough and turned from him. "He can't be any worse than you. I've heard enough excuses to recognise one."_

 _Rumpel didn't know what to say. "I had to protect you Bae. I didn't have a choice."_

 _Immediately, Baelfire turned around and with ferocity, confronted him. "Stop lying." he said. "Because I know what you did! I know about the deal Pan offered you. He said all you had to do was ask me if I wanted to come home."_

" _He told you?" his father had asked, bewildered._

" _He said that way I'd know if you really trusted me, if you really cared."_

" _Please Bae," Rumpel begged._

" _You didn't need to. I would have chosen to come home. I would have chosen you!" Bae said, extremely upset, no, disappointed. "If only you asked." The boy was starting to back off "Maybe we could have been a family again." he said before running out of their home with his father still calling after him._

* * *

 **Neverland. Now.**

"I'm sorry, I've got no choice. But we're safer without you. You want your redemption, you want to try and earn forgiveness? Get her back to Regina and Mary-Margaret." Neal indicated to the sleeping girl they had rescued, "Start there. Goodbye, Papa." his son had told him before he left, carrying Henry on one shoulder.

The Dark One had been crying for several minutes, still immobilised by the squid ink. In the makeshift cot, lay a sleeping Princess clothed in her ruined private school uniform. There was nothing to do but to replay his son's words over and over and over again. He thought about what he could have done differently, what he could have done to make him stay. He had told him the truth when he had said that Baelfire was his happy ending, and that he'd die to protect Henry. Now he had nothing. Again.

He was alone with his bad choices and even darker thoughts. Belle had not yet reappeared to console him. Rumpel had felt a tingling at the back of his neck, the sensation of the pull of another magic user. Hearing the crunch of dead leaves and twigs underfoot announced the return of a familiar nightmare.

Peter Pan had approached from the shadow, a dangerous group of Lost Boys following behind him. "I gotta say, Rumpel, I didn't think it would be this easy." Pan smirked with a shake of his head. "I must have overestimated you both." to Pan's left stood his lieutenant who had already strapped Henry to his back. A feeling of dread crept into the dark one, icing his gut.

"Bae," Rumpelstiltskin had whimpered, "What have you done to him?"

"Oh nothing yet," Pan laughed, "You've made your move, and then I make mine. The game continues, Baelfire's life is still in play so I'll be waiting. But I'm taking back what belongs to me." With a gentleness Rumpel had not seen in the demon boy from a very long time, Pan had slipped the unconscious girl back into his arms.

"Don't hurt them," Rumpel had growled.

"Like I said Rumpel, I'll be waiting." and with that, Pan and his lieutenant, carrying Henry and the Mills girl, vanished with a cloud of smoke.

He was alone. Again. With his thoughts swirling like dark clouds. He missed Belle.

* * *

 **The Lost Boy's Camp.**

When Rose had woken she knew something was wrong. Her dreams were filled with voices of the dead, she could have sworn it was Baelfire's. Groggy, someone had guided her to sit up more comfortably, it was Felix who had come to sit beside her, guarded her while she slept. He twirled a large dagger in one hand with sure fingers, his hood had fallen and she could see the large scar that marked his face.

Felix had been the first that Lily and Peter had brought to stay and live on the island, had always been the one closest to them than any of the boys. It pained her to see him become this withdrawn and silent creature, compelled to follow Pan's orders. Her feelings betrayed her, even after so many years apart, even after their duel the day before, she could not help but feel the familiar ease, she longed for the days when Neverland was still a place she called home when things were easier. Before the accident in the Dark Hollow.

Rose notices something different then, her hair was now unbound, braids removed and brushed neatly into smooth waves, more than that, she feels a small weight atop her head. Removing the weight, she finds a coronet of flowers, expertly woven together. She holds it in her hands, this beautiful thing made of orange tiger lilies and smaller white orchids. Numbly, Rose watches as Felix takes the crown out of her hands and sweetly places it back upon her brow. "For Mother," was all he said, going back to his spot and twirling his knife. She didn't know what to feel.

"Felix," she said in her soft voice, calling his eyes to her, "Where's Henry?"

The Lost Boy just pointed one thin finger. Some several meters away was Henry. Shocked, she had almost mistaken him for another Lost Boy were it not for his clothes. Henry had joined in the dance of the Lost Boys, he was hearing the tune of the pipes and dancing to it. From a distance Peter was spectating this recent turn of events, looking victorious as he played another song. She was losing him to Neverland. To Pan.

* * *

 _ **Hamelin. Then.**_

 _It was their last night in Hamelin, Rumpel had taken his son, while Peter had become bored and morose, she knew that soon they were to move on. But before they could leave a man had come before them ranting and raving, he smelled like a privy and most detestable of all, was ruining their party. Now he's trying to pick a fight. This was Hamelin's blacksmith and he was not a nice man. The blacksmith had foolishly followed his boy and was trying to drag him back home. Tiger Lily was surprised that he maintained the ability to even do so judging by the alcohol on his breath and his clumsy, inebriated form._

 _The Cat sounded bored even from behind her mask,"Look, if your child had felt so miserable, so unloved, that they heard his music, then you never deserved that child in the first place. You're a pathetic excuse for a parent. Do leave, grown-ups weren't invited here." she said, shooing him away with her small hand. He could see her eyes rolling through the slits of the mask._

 _The man growled, sticking a sausage-like finger in front of her face "I dunno know who ya are, but listen ya spoiled mongrel brat - I'm taking wot's mine! Now outta me way before I tan your hide!"_

 _Quicker than a flash, a dagger was pressed to his soft belly, its handle hewn from bone, the blade from sharpened stone. "Well how about this for a threat? You take one more step and I'll cut you. I've skinned bigger beasts before." The Cat had swept her mask to the side and for the first time he saw her young face, pretty and contorted in anger._

 _His head shook, he'd like to see her blood across his knuckles...right after he's taught his good-for-nothing son a lesson. "Oh little missy, when I get my hands on -"_

 _The girl only pressed the knife deeper into his skin, "I suggest you look around. I don't think you know who your trifling with." she was not bluffing. The man sees at least fifteen or twenty odd boys appear, seeming to have been summoned from the shadows, surrounding him, each with weapons raised. "I'm a girl who's got many friends. And you, blacksmith, have none."_

 _Another figure joined them then, his voice coming from behind the swarthy blacksmith. It was a leonine lad, not overly tall, but devious, "There, there Tiger. I see you've caught more prey. Now, I can't imagine what kind of wicked things you've got planned for him, but we have to leave before morning. So make it quick." There was a menacing edge to the clinical tone of this boy's voice, one that seemed to unnerve the boy was obviously the leader of this little gang and he proceeded to sit on a log nearby like a warrior chief with his legs folded under him. The leader had no other plans of intervening further, and was rather happy to watch that night's entertainment unravel._

 _The girl with the cat mask pondered this new information for a moment, "Well that depends entirely on how sharp my knife is…" she now directly addressed the blacksmith's son, whose arm was still firmly in the grasp of his alcoholic father. He looked strong and sturdy for his age, there were scars and burns littering his arms, but whether they were from his trade or from something- rather, someone else, that was uncertain._

" _Tell me, boy," The Cat asked "what's your father done to you? Whipped you? Starved you?"_

 _The boy had come forward, the mask he had previously worn to join in their revelries was now in his hand, humbling himself to the lady, "He'd hold my arm 'bove the coals if I did somethin' wrong." He began,"Beats me half to death when he can't find any coin to spend at the pub - said I stole em' - but him's the one that spent it all!" the boy's voice was clear and steady as he told them of his account, and when he was done, he spat on the ground, he wanted to be rid of the man who sired him._

 _Tiger had forced the man to his knees, his body sinking low into the mud, Felix and another Lost Boy held him there. "I suppose we can't really kill him without making too much of a fuss now, can we?" The girl had asked aloud, more to herself than anybody. She scratched her scalp with that same knife, and after some deliberation, concluded thusly, "I think I'll just take his hands."_

" _You wot?" The man was in disbelief. He kept struggling, but only found more weapons pointed at his body. He dared not move, sweat pouring over his eyes where it mixed with his nervous tears._

" _It would certainly lessen the amount of bad one can do," she continues, turning to his son, "Pity your town will lose its smithy." The girl shrugs her shoulders, "Ah well. Sorry, what was your name again? Forgot to ask."_

 _The son of the blacksmith met her amber eyes, with clarity he announced, "It's Rufio."_

 _Tiger smiled and slipped her mask on. If they were to leave before morning then they had better get started, "Alright, Rufio. Do you want to borrow my knife?"_

* * *

" _There are times when I worry that I've already lost myself. That is, that my self is so inseparable from being with you that if we were to separate, I would no longer be. I save this thought for when I feel the darkest discontent. I never meant to depend so much on someone else."_

 _― David Levithan, The Lover's Dictionary_

* * *

 **A/N:** Sorry it took so long to post part two! Boy, oh boy, our Tiger Lily has claws. I've always loved more anti-heroes than actual heroes anyway, that morally grey area is the sweet spot baby. I also always thought that the whole passing of Henry around was a bit drawn out so I shortened that, hopefully, the story makes sense even with the edits.

Shout out to all of you who read the last chapter and those MVPs who reviewed!

As always, please keep leaving your comments, the encouragement and insight really means a lot and I love reading them. PM me if you want to talk about everything and nothing at all. :) Any questions? Comments? Hearing from you really makes my day

I do not own any characters you might recognise, they are the property of Disney. I do own my OC (Rose/Tiger Lily).

Many thanks! And happy fanfic hunting!

-HannahBananasxx


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